I Dream of the Golden Dragon
by KasaiStormDog
Summary: Writer formally known as EvilWaffleS, off hiatus! Persona 4 fanfiction. NaotoxYu. Telling the story of Naoto's recovery after being pulled from the TV world, her dreams of the golden dragon, and her relationship with its master. Update: Overhaul and rework of the story in places to improve continuity - details listed on chapter 1!
1. Initial Dream

Author's note: I've never written (well, never published) a Persona 4 fanfiction before. I picked this because I began writing this not long after the game a second time through. I remembered feeling Naoto was the first character I could relate to. I grew up without many friends, and suffering with socially anxiety disorder. But enough self-pity.

I hope you enjoy, read and review :) it's a bit of a welcome change to my Ace Attorney works!

A/N 2 (Update 26/11/2015): Some major edits happening to the story, just to improve some continuity errors for later in the story. Thanks for your patience. Details listed below:

Minor grammar and name improvements, as well as explaining that Kohyru is a warm blooded creature.

Altered paragraph to factor in for Yakushiji's age chapter 2, in order to improve continuity later in the story.

Some minor issues corrected in chapter 3, chapter 4, 5 and 6 remain unchanged

Formatting issues corrected in chapter 7

Major changes about Naoto's lifestyle and Yakushiji's family in chapter 8

Chapter 9 and 10 unchanged

Minor changes in chapter 11

Minor changes to chapter 12

Overhaul of some of the content of chapter 13, mainly focusing around the family dynamic of Yakushiji and Naoto, formatting has been altered in places too

* * *

She did not remember much of the fight. Her shadow, she remembered that _child_ well enough, she then remembered a monsterous pair of beasts, they came from Yu-kun. There could have been more from him, but both were positioned defensively around her, not him.

The first, she was sure was a tiger. Byakko, she thought it responded to that name. The others all had these weird creatures too, but they were positioned above or beside their summoners, Byakko, even when generating almighty bursts of flame never once moved from the position curled instinctively around her. Why? Did it, or her senpai see her as weak? A child. _I am no child!_

She remembered a stab of pain as she felt something pull at her from deep inside, it was all of a sudden hot around her. Was her shadow doing something? She couldn't tell, her eyes weren't opening very easily anymore. There was an ear splitting roar, breaking the air around her.  
"Kohyru!" She heard her senpai, and barely managed to respond to the new sensation around her. It was warm, yet scaley, like a lizard.

Her eyes opened one more time before she remembered waking in front of her child form again, apologizing to the others and realising they now knew everything she hid deep inside. Whilst she strained against the golden backdrop now tightly wound around her, engulfing her in the colour. She felt the brush of whiskers and a low growl, barely able to make out what now faced her as it blew smoke at her, as if checking her consciousness.  
"D-dragon?" She felt its head pull away from her, it was obviously being summoned by its master.

-x-x-

"I am ok, Rise-san please!" She kept trying to pull away from the grip of the girls, Rise in particular was clinging to her tight, cutting slightly into her shoulder. "Loosen your grip!" They hadn't noticed him quietly following behind until Naoto had finally broken free of Yukiko and Rise and fallen straight back onto her ass – almost. He had managed to push against her back and suspended her slightly from the floor, balancing precariously on her feet.  
"Yu-kun!" She almost tried to pull forward, knowing she did not have the energy to keep her balance that way either.  
"What are you doing here senpai?" Rise asked, a gleeful admiration in her eyes.  
"Here, I'll help you up." He reached his other hand over Naoto, as she reached out to grab it, he braced himself to let go of her back and hoist her to her feet, she stumbled unsteadily, clinging to the hand that he held just a few inches above her head.

"Thank you." She loosened one arm from his grip, which Yukiko took over her shoulders.  
"Senpai, you didn't answer me!" Rise pouted as she reached to take Naoto's still extended arm from Yu.  
"N-no!" She pulled back, further into Yu. "You'll cut my shoulder again." Her stumbling had caused her to tilt slightly again, his immediate reaction was to reach in front of her and around her waist. She squirmed uncomfortably. "If you're going to help me then do what Yu is doing." Even as exhausted as she was, she would not be vulnerable.

"To answer your question Rise, I live near the apartment Naoto-kun" He paused a brief moment. "Naoto-san, sorry, lives."  
"How did you know that?" She struggled.  
"You walk the same direction as me every morning." He remarked cooly.  
"Why live in an apartment when your grampa lives in town?" Yukiko asked, noticing Naoto's body was getting limper, the last of her energy draining away. "I-I'm sorry, this is no time for questions."

She was barely conscious by the time they reached the apartment building.  
"2-A, keys…in…pocket…" Her head was rolling forward, she was exhausted.  
"Senpai, she's falling asleep." He hoped she wouldn't hate him for his next choice, they placed her down on a bench nearby and he reached down and tried to support her in a bridal-style carry hold to let her sleep.  
"I don't-!" She tried to object but fell into sleep long before she had a chance to fight him back.  
"Can you reach her keys?" He shifted his hand slightly to allow Yukiko access to her pocket.  
"I have them."

"Wow, Shirogane-san must come from a rich family!" Rise marvelled at the (thankfully) empty lobby. "Aw I wish I lived somewhere like this." She sulked.  
"She lives with her grampa on the Shirogane Estate normally, right?" Yukiko mused. "If it's where I think it is, her grandfather is certainly wealthy."  
"My arms are getting tired, can we just get her to her room?" She was surprisingly light, but he too was tired from the TV World, she felt far heavier to fatigued muscles.

He placed her down on her bed at Yukiko's instruction, he didn't feel welcome in this room, it was her room, her bedroom.  
"We should leave her to sleep." He remarked, grimacing at the invasion of her privacy.  
"Shouldn't we at least change her into pyjamas first?" Rise asked.  
"No. Let her sleep."  
"But senpai-!" She went to protest until Yukiko waved her off.  
"She's fine, look, she's already settling down."

"We should leave a note with her when she wakes up. Just to let her know."  
"Senpai, she has a notebook on the counter here. It looks like she uses it to note down telephone chats. Write it on here." Rise handed him a pen and paper.

_I took a set of spare keys, yours are in the bowl by the door. Let your grampa know you're ok when you wake in a few hours. Get plenty of rest. Call if you need anything._

He signed the bottom of the note and added his phone number.  
"What did you write Senpai!" Rise called too loud, causing a stir in the sleeping Naoto.  
"Quiet Rise-san!" Yukiko scolded. "We'll be off." With a tug, Rise was out of the apartment. He placed the notebook on the empty bedside table next to her phone.

He switched her keys for another in the bowl, took a glance out the door to check nobody was coming, then switched out the lights and locked the door behind himself.

-x-x-

"W-where?" Her head swirled, she could see a small light glowing at her wrist. "Why do I feel so…sick?" She took the effort to heave herself into a position to read her watch. It was 9pm. She reached for her lamp. Moaning with the effort it took to stretch her muscles even that far.

All she managed was a message to her grampa's secretary notifying him of her safe return home. He needn't worry and would be better to continue assisting her grandfather in his work. The level headed man would know to contact the police station and scold them for informing her grandfather she was missing.

She held back the sickness feeling. Letting sleep overtake her once more.

-x-x-

"Naoto-san, how do you feel?" Wherever she was, it was white. Her eyes shot open. Leaning over her was that stupid shadow of hers again.  
"Don't you dare come near me!"  
"Naoto-san? I won't hurt you. I promise." The slightly younger looking Naoto leaned back, slamming herself onto her backside with a hard thud. "You are sleeping, I thought you wanted some company."  
"Company? I just want to rest!" Naoto growled.  
"Oh well Mr. Dragon here said he wanted to see you." The little girl remarked.  
"Dragon?" Naoto turned to face her. "What drago-?"

Behind the white clad Naoto was a large golden dragon, she noticed the long whiskers and the growl. This was the first time she had managed to piece together the brief glimpses she got of this beast to form what looked like a coherent creature. It blew plumes of smoke from its nostrils, which enveloped the shadow Naoto, she would cough but then giggle.  
"He's really cool Naoto-san. He's stopped me being lonely." She giggled, pulling gently at one whisker which had draped over her shoulder as the dragon tilted its head.  
"You _are _most impressive." Naoto remarked. The dragon simply growled.

"I do seem to remember you having a name." Despite being able to clearly identify this was a dream, she could feel a pang of pain in her skull as she tried to recall.  
"Kohyru." It responded, a low rumble shaking through her chest as it did. "Kohyru is my name, young one."  
"I didn't know you had a voice." She responded coolly.  
"I simply have one you feel suitable, but in reality, I do have a voice most like this when communicating with my master. Perhaps some of our residual presence rubbed off on you." It responded.

"What?" She rubbed her eyes, then her temples.  
"I am saying, child, that the communications between my master and I may have been…tapped into by yourself mistakenly."  
"I don't-"  
"I can communicate without words, as can my master. With my contact to you before you lost conscious perhaps you may have felt some of our communication?" It sounded more like a conclusion she could come to, but she did not press this with the creature.

"I trust she has not irritated you." She nodded her head towards her shadow self.  
"I have barely noticed." It rumbled.  
"Why can't I wake?"  
"Exhaustion, not like anything you will have felt before. Master feels it too, as do the others." It responded matter of factly.  
"I will be ok?"  
"Of course. But now you must rest, I suppose I shall stay as long as I can." It began to release smoke far faster than before, making her want to cough. "Do not worry about this little one, she will not anger me."

Darkness surrounded her once more.

* * *

Author's note: It's a bit short, and I already have quite a lot more of this story written. I hope it was ok...this wasn't beta read, since I don't have a beta reader after so long being away.


	2. Naoto's Recovery

"I heard that Naoto-kun has been found. He returned to his apartment." Dojima responded as his exhausted nephew slammed himself down onto the floor, feeling his lower spine crack as he did.

"Has he?" He responded sleepily, it took all his effort not to mistakenly say 'she', that was her thing to tell his uncle.  
"He is your friend isn't he? Did he say where he was going before he left?"  
"No, and…Naoto-kun isn't all that friendly with any of us."  
"Hm…you and your friends should visit him." An unusual remark from his uncle.  
"I think Yukiko-san might know where he lives. She's walked home with him for a while." He lied, he didn't want to, but he couldn't say he took Naoto home.

"Like I said, he's a cocky brat, but a good kid." The man shrugged, the effect of the murders showing as he struggled to get his muscles set into a comfortable position.  
"I'll visit before work tomorrow."  
"The hospital?" Dojima asked.  
"Yeah, I shouldn't be there too long, they took on another part timer and he's going to take over some more of the duties. I can decrease my hours."

"What do you use all this money for?" Dojima asked curiously, careful not to get Nanako's attention and assume they were fighting again.  
"I'm saving it. For university." It was a half lie; he saved the money from several of his jobs for his future education but most went onto supplies.  
"Get some rest. You look awful." Dojima laughed. Yu sighed with relief; he had gotten away with it.

As much as he wished he would, he did not settle that night. He was worried for her. He remembered in a casual conversation that her grandfather and his secretary were out of town for six weeks, working on an independent case from the Inaba murders. That had been three weeks ago, hence why she hadn't moved back into the estate yet. He was worried, she would be alone. He could go and look after her for a while, he resolved, until her grandfather undoubtedly finished his case or sent his secretary home early.

-x-x-

She hated herself for not getting out of bed that morning, so when she woke around midday she resolved to at least stretch her legs a little. There were small knots beginning to form in her legs. She had dreamt of Kohyru in the few hours between her first waking and her midday waking. It said nothing, neither did she. They just watched each other, she noted how her shadow self was taking a shine to the creature, before it blew smoke and the scene disappeared once more.

"I need…to change." She had checked her phone to see a message from the secretary saying he would be returning to Inaba ahead of her grandfather, but due to complications in the case it would not be for a while yet. She did not want him to see her in this state, by the time he returned she should at least be able to walk around and feed herself. Well, get to the fridge at least.

Her body was weak, she had barely reached her small chest of drawers before she felt exhausted. She had managed to struggle into a tshirt and a pair of baggy bottoms before she felt a wave of nausea. She never made it further than a few steps before she knelt down on the floor, and let sleep overtake her again.

"Senpai, are you busy today?" Rise asked, grabbing him with a little more roughness than was needed in the hallway at lunch.  
"I am, I'm sorry Rise-san."  
"Oh is it music practice, or basketball today?"  
"No, I have to help Nanako with her homework before I go to work." It was the most convincing lie he could think of.  
"Oh, the others all mentioned going to the movies. I guess its ok." She went quiet. "Naoto-kun will be ok, right senpai?"  
"She'll be fine." _I don't understand how you can all go to the movies…well…I guess its better this way…_

He had headed to Junes with Yosuke, and had made up a lie about wanting to pick up some food to eat in his break at work. Teddie was soon rushing out and dragging Yosuke away, only stopping to ask if Naoto was safe.  
"She's fine." He nodded.  
"Help Nao-chan get better, won't you sensei?" He smiled sheepishly.

He had no idea what Naoto ate. If she even ate at all. He had never seen her once stop to eat at school, in fact he very rarely saw her at school at all. He passed her in the library a few times, her head buried deep in a book, ignoring the world around her. Something as slim as her obviously didn't eat a lot, but he still went around the store picking up any pre-packaged ready to eat food he could find. He would ask Nanako to collect some fresh vegetables to see if he couldn't make Naoto some soup when she was able to eat that much.

He had knocked on the door first, just to check to see if she was awake, and to alleviate the worries of anyone in the neighbouring apartments who thought he could have been breaking in. He sighed, clutching the Junes bag tight against his body as he tried to free his wrist and unlock the door.  
"Naoto-kun?" He called out as he stepped into the apartment, his eyes closed as a manner of respect. "Naoto-kun?" He called lower this time. His eyes shot open and noticed her asleep on the floor inches from her bed. "Are you ok!?" She didn't respond, he knelt down beside her, noticing she was breathing fine and didn't seem injured.

"Let's get you back in bed." He rolled her gently onto her back, negotiating his arms under her neck and legs and placed her back onto the bed, removing her cap and placing it on the vacant pillow beside her. He sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. He took a quick look around the bedsit, a double bed in the corner, a small bathroom behind a door on the wall behind the bed. A very small kitchen, a leather couch and a large screen TV situated next to a laundry basket. The sofa didn't look sat on that much, her computer chair looked far more worn, her desk marked where she had spent a long period of time leaning on it. Her shelves were sparsely covered with notebooks and detective novels – this room was temporary lodgings for her – it was hardly a surprise it didn't feel homely.

He placed the chopsticks and sparse offering of food on the bedside counter, carried the clothes she had discarded to the laundry basket, and pulled her window to, he noticed her phone still had power in it to last until the morning, he left her a new note.

_I thought you might be hungry. You were clearly up and about. I put your clothes in the laundry basket in the corner. I have to go to work now._

-x-x-

"My master is a caring man." The dragon was staring off into the white void, away from Naoto, who seemed to be alone today, her shadow nowhere to be found.  
"He saved me." She went quiet. The dragon twisted, its body flexing so it did not have to lean on its claws and have to drop those beads it always carried. She watched it intently, as if it was waiting to say something.  
"Never mind." It was close to her face now; she could feel the choking sensation in her throat from the fumes it released. "That was not quite what I meant."  
"What did you mean then?" She huffed.  
"It does not matter small one."

"When will I be able to move properly, without getting so tired?"  
"What makes you think I have that answer?" The dragon mocked.  
"I remember another creature…" She didn't know what she was doing, it was most likely reaffirming her memory with herself. "A…big cat…a tiger I think."  
"Byakko." The creature responded. That was the end of that conversation.  
"Saying things like that makes you think you are just a part of my imagination, you have my social skills." She didn't judge the beast's reaction.  
"You will sleep for a while now Naoto." It fell silent once more.

-x-x-

A week into her recovery, she was able to appreciate the food and the notes left for her daily. She had established that Yu-kun visited her daily, often before work. For the first few days all that she had been left was pre-packaged, pre-cooked food in Junes; an unusual box from Aiya, filled with meat – which she assumed Chie had bought. The last two days had yielded something far more delightful, freshly made soup and warm bread. She wanted to stay awake to thank whoever came to visit her today, she felt ready, yet as the morning turned into the afternoon her body began to ache.

She threw the book she had been reading down onto the bed.  
"A nap…won't hurt." She sighed. "Just a little while."

She did not dream of Kohryu, and Shadow Naoto was not there either, she hoped that meant for a peaceful and light rest.

-x-x-

The others had grown slightly suspicious of Yu by this point, he would slink off out the school as soon as the bell rang, occasionally walking across the floodplains with whoever was available before shying away and heading straight home.  
"Welcome home big bro!" Nanako called, barely having got home herself. "Are you going to see Naoto-kun today too?"  
"I'm afraid so." He felt bad for neglecting her.  
"It's ok, dad says Naoto-kun doesn't have anyone to look after him, something about his grandpa being out of Inaba and not being able to come home. Dad is coming home straight away tonight."  
"Good. I promise I'll make it up to you Nanako." He was rooting in the fridge for the bento box he made for Naoto.  
"Bottom shelf." Nanako pointed out before dumping herself in front of the television. He smiled to himself and said goodbye.

Thankfully, since Naoto's rescue, the weather had been calm. He balanced the box carefully, in his arm as he unlocked the door to her apartment.  
"Naoto-kun, are you awake?" He called out. He had yet to see her awake when he had visited, but it was obvious she was becoming more active. He no longer needed to keep her place clean, or replace her book as she read through it and more food and water were disappearing from the bedside table each day.

"I bought something special for you today." He kept his distance from the bed, she had shuffled under the covers and from the looks of it had a more peaceful sleep than other days, where her bed sheets had been pulled completely around her like a tight cocoon.  
"I'll leave it here." He moved the soup bowl and plate where the bread had been the day before, placing the bento box in their place.

He had proved to be a little bit of a domesticated beast since his move into Inaba, helping to pick up the slack for Nanako and cooking for three had showed him that much. He found it no effort to keep Naoto's apartment neat. If it wasn't for the fatigue he would be able to do it much faster. He couldn't complain though, this was his first day off since he rescued her, and he intended to stick around as long as he could in the hope he would get a glimpse of her awake.

She showed no sign of moving anytime soon, so he instead scooped one of her detective novels off her desk and decided to indulge in reading for a while. He could see what she had meant about these novels, the heroes were men – the victims and lesser characters normally women.

He felt his tiredness creeping up on him. Even as the book landed on his chest with a thud as he sprawled across the sofa, it didn't disturb him once.

-x-x-

"Thank you for this." The man on the phone was apologetic. "Whilst Naoto is a prime concern for myself and my master, we can not leave this case." The woman smiled to herself before politely replying.  
"It's ok Yakushiji." She giggled.

She was the oldest of the maids on the Shirogane estate, having known Yakushiji the entire time he had worked at the estate

"Naoto-san?" The woman called through the door, pressing her head gently against it. "Your grandfather has asked me to check on you." She went to press down on the handle, to her surprise, the door was unlocked – despite Naoto not answering. "Oh my." She blushed as she saw the girl spooning a pillow against her chest, shivering slightly from her illness or ailment – the woman was not too sure what had caused Naoto to be so ill. The woman took a moment to cast a glance across the apartment – she was certain nobody had been in to clean it, yet it was spotless, then her eyes fell upon Naoto's couch.

-x-x-

"Did you sense that Naoto?" Her eyes did not snap open, rather they were a gentle flutter to be met by the face of that infernal reptile that was haunting her.  
"I…someone is in my room?" She asked, focusing on the sound from the outside world.  
"Indeed they are. I feel you have two visitors, your previous one has yet to leave." It coiled slightly, allowing itself to place its head level with her own, whilst keeping her back supported against a further length. "These guests mean no harm, I am sure."

"I wanted to be awake to greet my guests today." Naoto let her comment hang in the air.  
"In time, young one. You will wake soon enough." She couldn't help but notice his whiskers, brushing against her legs. "Your strength is returning."  
"Yes, I noticed." She took the chance to stand, noticing how the dragon shifted its weight to help her stand. "Why are you still here?"

"I do not know, but it seems I am in your thoughts and dreams often. I question if I am more than a pigment of your imagination after all."  
"I was reaching the same conclusion myself." She remarked.  
"I have a request of you." It remarked, marvelling at its own reflection in the red bead it clutched in its claw.  
"What is it?"  
"I wish for you to permit me to stay here." It lowered its head down, its nostrils close to her face.  
"I don't think that would be wise, until I know what you are…I will not have much choice. But if I find out what you are and do not like it. You will not come here again, are we in agreement?" It chortled, which took her aback a little.  
"I believe I will be of great assistance to you." It bowed its head slightly. "Now rest young one."

-x-x-

"Hm…Yu…that must be the boy on the sofa." She had decided not to wake him, he looked harmless enough, and the note left beside the sleeping Naoto seemed to suggest he had been the one coming to check on her every day. "I think this is something I should keep to myself, I do not wish to alarm Shirogane-san, I will simply tell them she is recovering." She decided to herself. She quietly placed her own note to Naoto beside the one in the notebook. She checked the fridge, placing a few items inside before glancing back at the boy.

"You are a handsome one." She whispered to herself, chuckling light-heartedly. He stirred slightly, before twisting onto his side, the book sliding onto the floor with a gentle thud. It was clear he would not be waking anytime soon. "Poor dear, you look exhausted. Are you one of those people Naoto has mentioned back at the estate?" She knew he would not answer, and instead decided she would find something to make him comfortable, remembering she had once bought Naoto extra bedding, which was still stored in a box in the corner.

-x-x-

"Koh…yru…" Naoto groaned. "Why do you…?" Her eyes were heavy, her talk with the dragon being a confusing mass of nonsense in the real world of the waking. Her watch notified her it was 6pm, she had missed her visitors by some time, she must have. She twisted to her right, to look at the bedside table in the hope of some goodies.

Her hand, frailer and skinner than she had wanted clutched the glass of fruit juice first. Someone had bothered to leave her a cold drink, and a fresh pitcher of water should she need it. She did not hesitate to gulp down the drink, not stopping for air until the glass was gone. She inhaled deeply, feeling the cooling sensation running through her insides.

Today she was ravenously hungry, disregarding the notes that had been left, she reached for the blue box and the chopsticks that lay atop.  
"California rolls!" She sighed in delight. "My favourite." She placed a piece in her mouth, feeling her strength return as she chewed. She reached for the notebook, choosing to read the note left on her notebook.  
"How kind of you, Yu-kun." She placed another piece of sushi in her mouth before glancing at the folded note that was written on familiar paper. It had the letter head of the Shirogane estate. "Has grampa visited?"

_Hello Naoto-san. I hope you are recovering. Your grandfather is being held back in the city. I will let him know you are __recovering. I am sorry nobody from the estate visited sooner. Your friend seems to have exhausted himself he passed out on the sofa. Don't worry, I'll keep quiet about what I saw –_

She never got to the end of the note before she embarrassedly crumpled it.  
"My friend?" She placed the bento box back on the bedside table, hoping desperately her legs would take her weight as she balanced on the counter to lift herself off the bed. For the first time in weeks that was not a struggle, she reached for her hat and pressed it to her head before stumbling across the room to the sofa. She was still unsteady on her feet, and each step had to be delayed as she regained her balance from the one before. She reached for the back of the sofa as soon as she approached, feeling more confident in her balance, she peered over.

He was laying on his right side, facing towards the television.  
"Yu-kun?" She struggled across to the other side of the sofa, gently lowering herself to her knees in front of him, she noticed he had been reading one of her favourite detective novels, the torn pages and battered spine showed how much she had read it. "Yu-kun, wake up." She gently pushed his arm, rolling him gently onto his back.  
"Wah-" He panicked her, causing her to stumble back against her coffee table. "Naoto-kun?" He blinked his eyes and focused towards the source of contact.  
"Don't do that!" She scowled.

"I…fell asleep didn't I?"  
"You look exhausted." She felt her tiredness creeping up again, she rubbed her eyes heavily.  
"You look a little like the shadow you there." He chuckled.  
"Shut. Up." She growled.  
"Thanks for the blanket." He pushed himself up into a sitting position.  
"That wasn't me. It was my family's maid." Her head felt heavy. "Senpai, how long have you been coming to visit me for?"

"Every day, I left you here the night we bought you back, then took some keys from the bowl. I know you mentioned your grandfather works a lot, I didn't want you to starve." He said bashfully. "Here uh…I'll help you up." He pulled her to her feet and dropped her down onto the sofa.  
"Senpai…I didn't need your help. I don't really deserve it." She was quiet as he disappeared behind her to collect the food and water from her bedside.

"It doesn't matter, you're my friend, right?"  
"Friend?" That seemed like an unusual concept for her. Which hadn't gone unnoticed by Yu.  
"Yes, a friend. You know what one is, don't you detective?" He teased.  
"Stop it!" She whined, before throwing her head forward and groaning.

"You're nearly there, just a bit longer and you'll be back to normal, huh?" He poured her another drink and offered her the glass.  
"Thank you." She took the glass and felt her headache ease slightly. "I hope to be returning to school as soon as possible."  
"I guess you won't need me to come round anymore if your family maid can come?"  
"Well…she's meant to be taking care of her sister's grandkids; I don't think she will come to see me again until I'm healthy again." Naoto was tired, but her brain was working overtime. "Thank you for the food and things senpai…"

"No problem, it's Sunday tomorrow, I'll come see you in the evening with some food ok?" He promised. "I should go home soon…"  
"Senpai…before you go can I ask you something?"  
"What is it?"

"Do you have a persona called Kohyru?" She asked.  
"Kohyru? You remembered that part of the fight against your shadow?" Her eyes widened, so nobody else had experienced, or at least mentioned it to him.  
"I remember the name, can you tell me anything about it? Like what it looked like."

"He is a gold dragon, with these things sticking off his head like the base of arrows, he carries different colored beads in each arm, and he's been my most used persona." She was falling into a sleep state again. "I guess that'll do for now?" He pulled the blanket from beneath her feet and laid it over her.

For now, Kohyru would be her only company until senpai's next visit.


	3. Checkmate Kohyru

Even after she gained her strength, returned to school and settled back into classes after notifying the group of her recovery and what she knew of her attacker; she was still haunted by dreams of that golden dragon.

The dragon didn't understand its presence in her mind, neither did she, but it seemed intent on helping her understand her complicated relationships with its master and his friends. Her shadow self also seemed interested in the dragon's presence. When both creatures featured in her dreams, her shadow self would often try to climb all over the reptile, pulling at the creatures whiskers and tugging at its tail. To her surprise, the dragon did not react to her child self, just gently nudging her away until Naoto lost her temper at the child.

"Be gentle with her Naoto, she and you may be one and the same, but she is born from a fragile and broken part of your psyche. She will settle soon enough." Her lunch break in the library had involved her studying up on the mysterious occupant of her dream. She may not have been able to learn why he was there but at least more on what he was. She had fallen asleep at the desk again. "I see you have been reading up on me."  
"I…fell asleep again, didn't I?"  
"You are almost fully recovered, just a little more. It is merely a small nap so you and I may speak."  
"That sounds…unsettling." Naoto rubbed her arm with her head down.  
"When you are recovered, I will not need you to be sleeping to talk to you. That is what I believe at least." He wafted her shadow self with its tail to keep her from climbing on him.  
"I…see."  
"I feel my presence in your dreams is directly linked to your presence around my master."  
"So you're saying, the more time I spend around him, the more I can speak with you?" She noticed how much more knowledge the beast was gaining. "I'm guessing being around him is helping you understand what you're doing here too."  
"My master's presence does seem to help." He remarked. "Our time for now is over." Smoke engulfed her again.

"Hey Naoto-chan, where did you go to at lunch?" Rise pouted.  
"To the library." Naoto still wasn't entirely comfortable around this girl.  
"Oh well Senpai was looking for you."  
"Thanks."

Sheltered from the rain, they were waiting for the dark sky to lighten up a bit as she twisted the detective badge around in her hand. They were idly passing the time talking about Yu and his life in Tokyo as well as the few glimpses into her childhood she was willing to discuss.

"If you wanted more answers, you'd be better to ask him for his help." It was like a thunderbolt in her skull.  
"Naoto, are you ok!?" He reached forward to try and help her.  
"F-fine." She grimaced through the pain. "I just thought he wasn't…nngh."  
"Who wasn't?"  
"I…I dream of that infernal gold dragon of yours!" She cried out in pain, barely able to keep her voice in check.

"W-what?" Her headache eased off as she felt a low grumble settle through her brain.  
"That's a good girl now." He remarked proudly. _Fuck you, reptile._ She scolded it internally.  
"I asked its name because…ugh…" She pulled her hat down over her eyes, to try and shield her warming face from him. "Since you guys saved me…that _thing_ has been there. It talks as if it knows you, as if it knows _me_."  
"Well what does it say?"  
"Perplexing riddles and non-sensical gibberish, and it doesn't leave!" She snapped, as if it was Yu's fault the dragon was there, it probably was, but he wasn't aware.

He walked her back to the apartment she would be leaving soon, moving back in with her grandfather.  
"Thank you, senpai." She bowed politely before scurrying off inside, shutting the door behind her.  
"A drink would have been nice." He chuckled to himself as he walked in the direction of his own home.

She threw her stuff down in a huff, she was convinced that the stupid reptile had told her she was still too weak to hear it talking outside of her sleep.  
"I am most apologetic." She closed her eyes to focus on the voice.  
"What do you want from me?" She bit her lower lip. "Leave me alone."  
"I can not."  
"What!? Of course you can, shoo." She yelled, the voice was coming from behind her, even though she knew it was an internal voice she still pivoted on her own axis to face behind her.

It was a flickering image, faded like if it had emerged from the television, but it was without doubt that same golden dragon. She screeched as she fell back, feeling the pain reverberate through her pelvis. The dragon was coiled tightly, with the exception of the first few feet of its length, which held its head high above her, the head ornaments pushed through the ceiling, not making a dent.  
"I can not leave, I told you already." It remarked. Cautiously, she crawled forward and held a hand out, she expected to feel the cold scales, but instead her hand fell back down onto the carpet, the dragon flickering around her hand.  
"You're…hollow…like you just came through the television."  
"An excellent deduction detective." It mocked. "So tell me, what do you know about me?"  
"I…why are you bothering me?"  
"I told you, I do not know. My master is clearly fond of you, or perhaps you need me here."  
"_Need_ you? Yes, clearly I needed a monster reptile that speaks non-sensical rubbish and tongues. Go back to guarding your celestial beast friends." She scowled like a small child throwing a tantrum.  
"My dear girl." It bowed its head slightly, yellow fumes rising from its nostrils and the elaborate horns it had being shown in its full glory. "I am here for a reason, perhaps it is something as simple as to check you are safe."  
"But then senpai would have_ told _me about you, he didn't know."  
"Subconscious perhaps?" It saw the spark in her eyes as if a lightbulb lit in her brain. "I'm sure my master can speak to the residents of the Velvet Room."

"Velvet Room?" She was curious.  
"Ah, perhaps something I should not have said, my master knows that none of you may enter. He isn't sure how he can enter it himself."  
"So what is it?"  
"A link between this world and the next, it's what allows him to summon so many personae. We are all born of different elements of him." The dragon noticed the interest in her eyes. "My master is unique, his heart holds many possibilities, whereas you and your friends are only on the course with one. Shadow Naoto, and her persona equivalent are a representation of what you repressed."  
"So surely that means that Yu-kun has many repressed thoughts."  
"I am not sure mistress." It seemed disappointed, head and snout almost touching the floor. "Perhaps it is just that he has accepted a bad hand in life."

"I think it may be in my interest to keep you around for a while." The detective concluded. "You seem to be privy to information that your master keeps locked in his head." The dragon seemed shocked.  
"Be warned mistress, it is a double edged sword. I can tell him as much about you as I can tell you about him."  
"Misstress? Please call me by my name."  
"My master's name for you, Naoto-kun, is that better?"  
"Yes, much."  
"Until tomorrow." It bowed. "After all, I'm sure I'd be interested in those hospital results belonging to everyone." It teased.  
"Don't read anything about me." She growled. "Hey hang on, how do you know about that?"  
"I can read you like a book Naoto-kun." It bowed its head before vanishing before her eyes.

-x-x-

She held the paperwork in her hand, she had disposed of the medical files bar her own. She was still flustered, that bear had planned on announcing personal details – including her measurements to the rest of the group. She had heard most of the group disperse as she rushed off around the corner with the files in her arms. Her back resting against the wall, she sunk to the floor within seconds.

_It was only my measurements, he could have read the 'long-term conditions' section…_

"PTSD, Social Anxiety Disorder…what an unfortunate childhood you had." Her ears picked up the growl by her ear.  
"…Don't bring that up…" She hung her head low.  
"It must be painful." She turned to her left to see there was nothing there. "I don't imagine I am helping much, I will leave you in peace."

"You ok Naoto?" He stood over her, left hand on his hip, smiling down. As she looked up she realised how watery her eyes must have been, she quickly looked back down in a sharp movement, slamming her file shut. "Something in there you didn't want to see? Or is it just Teddie?" He glanced around the corner, noticing the blonde boy had gone bounding off down the halls.  
"It's fine. Just Teddie and his embarrassing me." She mumbled.  
"Hey cheer up, nobody really cares that much." He knelt down to her level. "Fancy some food?"  
"Why?" She asked, head jerked up to meet his gaze.  
"I thought you might want to know what I've discussed about Kohyru, and I know he told you about the Velvet Room." He raised himself back into a standing position, feeling his knees click back into place, he reached a hand down, which she ignored and pulled herself up into a standing position.

It was raining, and in his eyes that meant only one thing.  
"What _is _this?" She asked, chopsticks nudging meat around in the bowl, revealing more meat underneath.  
"This is the mega beef bowl, rainy day special, here at Aiya." He declared happily.  
"And you expect me to eat all this?" She asked. "Can _you _even eat it?"  
"Nope, Teddie can't either and look how much he eats." He chuckled to himself. "Look, enjoy it. It's my treat. I wanted to talk to you about Kohyru." He broke the chopsticks apart and picked up a piece of meat between them. "First, we dine."

It felt awkward, being sat alone with her senpai, she had barely spent any time with him outside of school, and had never been alone before.  
"…I could have bought the others along." He remarked, clicking his fingers to break her silent musing and turn her attention back on him.  
"That would not be necessary, I am sure they would not believe you, or myself. Or be interested in the reason we are here." She was already full and she had barely peeled through the top layer, she placed the chopsticks beside the bowl and took a sip of the water she had ordered alongside the meal. "Forgive me senpai, I have never been good at eating a lot of food." She tipped the brim of her hat slightly, to hide the slight tint to her cheeks.

He had gotten half way through the bowl before he nudged it to one side, reaching into his satchel at the side of him in the booth.  
"I figured you could read this." He offered her his own medical file. "Don't worry, it's not all of it, I got mine before the bear got it, I threw out most of the pages and kept this one."  
"Senpai…why would you?"  
"Read the bit I highlighted in the test results." He pointed out.

_Patient shows abnormally high brain activity in regions associated with dreaming, when questioned, subject responded that he often exhibited unusual dreaming and has frequently experienced lucid dreaming and sleep talking._

"Why is this important?" She asked, trying to mask her true feelings under a stoic expression on her face.  
"It says something similar in yours, doesn't it, Naoto-kun?" Her eyes widened momentarily. "I could take a guess, we went in one at a time, you, I and Teddie were gone longer than the others, Teddie for his x-rays and you and me for a brain scan, right?"  
"How could you possibly have deduced that?" Something warm fogged her brain. "_It_ told you, didn't it?"  
"Kohyru? In a roundabout way, yes." He nodded. "I asked if I should be worried about you, if you had something wrong I should know. He ignored it. He said it was not his interest to read into your past." He shrugged.  
_"It is not my thing to tell Naoto-kun."_ She felt light headed as the voice called to her.  
"Earth to Naoto-kun." Yu called her attention back to him again. "I think Kohyru is born from my honesty and integrity. He seems to be determined to keep certain details to himself."

"Senpai, the Velvet Room, what is it?" She asked, the bowls had long since gone cold, the little girl working behind the counter from Naoto's class had taken the bowls, the money Yu had left and offered them tea. Naoto had noted down a few things her senpai had mentioned of interest during their conversation in the notebook from her satchel.  
"I don't know myself." He rubbed the back of his neck. "But there's a girl there, her name is Margaret, she seems to believe Kohyru's presence in your head is for the same reason he coiled around you in the laboratory. I subconsciously offered you my support. The end product was his presence in your thoughts."  
"That sounds absurd."  
"So does a world in a TV." He retorted.  
"True, and I regretted not believing Yukiko-senpai that the TV world existed." She leant back, tiredness fogging her vision and clarity. "It does not explain how he moves between us, and shares our thoughts, why that persona …or why it seems to have only happened to me." She sighed, one question answered, many more came forward. "So many questions and mysteries…"

"Senpai, it is getting dark, I am still not of complete health, perhaps we should be leaving." She nodded towards the door. "I am sure Dojima-san must be curious as to where you are, as well."  
"Of course, I'm sorry I don't have any more answers." He bowed his head. "It's a neat little mystery don't you think?"  
"If that is what you wish to call it." He noticed a slight curling of her lips, as if she was happy at that notion.  
"Of course I do." He smiled. "Oh I have work tonight, so I have to get straight on the bus, but at least let me see you off to the end of the shopping district." She shook her head, not able to mouth the words to decline the offer.

It was on the walk back across the North Shopping District, passing by the shrine that he noticed the man clad in all black. He was convinced he had not seen him when they left Aiya, but the man seemed to show an interest in the silverette as he made his way by. The man knew of Yu's relationship to Naoto, and the questions he asked were curiously, and loosely based around the young detective's profession. He took the card from the man, slipping it into the front pocket of his bag before getting the bus.

-x-x-

"You are indeed intrigued by mysteries." She ignored the flickering image only she could see as she began moving around the room packing things into boxes and suitcases. She did not have many belongings in the apartment, but it was better to do it this evening that before her grandfather's secretary collected her to make their way to the estate later in the week.  
"Well of course, a detective solves mysteries." She landed on the bed, her energy drained after barely packing a thing. "Did you need something of me Kohyru?" She sat bolt upright, moving to carry on her packing.  
"I just wished to speak." The dragon spoke normally with a calm and steady voice. "What is it the doctor said, this is a lucid dream, was it?"

"How come only you get to decide when we speak?" She asked.  
"I do not. Only you or my master have control of that." It noticed the change in gait, the sudden sharpness of her movements as she swivelled to face it.  
"Me!?"  
"Yes of course, it is your thoughts and memories and mind I take residence in, you could lock me away in a tiny little box should you really choose." It smirked. "Yet, whilst you may not know why I am here, or just what I am capable of, you seem to be eager to speak to me."

"Capable of?"  
"I sense that I may be of more use to you than I am at this current moment in time. With your strength returning, I can feel a strong sense of control wafting over your emotions and myself and your shadow. I sense we may be of a benefit to you." It paused, noting how winded she looked. "Perhaps you can continue your packing another day mistress – I mean Naoto-kun – as you appear most tired. You mortals, humans in particular, are strange beasts."  
"I'm strange?" She placed her hat on her bedside table. "Says the giant gold celestial dragon that may be spying on my thoughts to give my secrets to its master."  
"A master who is even stranger than you." The dragon hovered over her, and for a brief moment she was tense. "I mean you no harm, but considering how tight a restriction I am under, I can not harm you, even if I chose to hurt you. And you _are _strange, talking to the gold dragon hovering over your bed nobody else could see me. At least, not with your and his current bond, and your strength." With that, he left her. She had blinked and missed his departure.  
"What? Come back! I have so many questions. I…thought you said I could call you…come back…"

"_I am sorry…you are not strong enough…" _The growl echoed through her head. _K-Kohyru...please..._

-x-x-

"She grows most excitable at the prospect of mysteries, doesn't she master?" The dragon's voice was not an unfamiliar one to him, coming across as a deep rumble from a far recess of the mind. He was referring to when Yu had given her the card, and how she babbled almost excitedly at the prospect of solving another mystery. "Perhaps this can help strengthen your bond, even help you understand about me, why this has happened, why or _how _you willed this to be." Yu remained calm, wanting to make sure any thoughts were not vocalised in the middle of class. Instead, he doodled responses to the dragon's remarks on the notebook in front of him.  
"What is this?" It growled, noticing a particular note scrawled at the top of the sheet.

_Answer me this dragon, is she unwell?_

"Master, she is not unwell, or at least not in a way you should concern yourself. Alas, as I told her myself, this ability is a double edged sword. I am not willing to tell you what I saw on those papers through her eyes. Just as I am not willing to tell her about that strange little excitement you feel whenever she mentions mysteries and her eyes light up."

_Checkmate Kohyru. You win this round._


	4. Gender Roles and a Pageant

A/N: I wanted to add some clarity, the italicised speech from Kohyru is where he doesn't have a physical manifestation in the waking world, so he is speaking to Yu or Naoto from inside their own minds, just to separate the two separate entities speaking as it were. Thanks for the reviews, support, follows and favorites, enjoy!

* * *

"_Master, I can't help but sense uneasiness. It is manifesting itself as an unusual pain in my tail, perhaps there is something distressing Naoto-kun?"_ The dragon was grumbling in his little space in Yu's mind. _I have no idea what you could be on about dragon_.

There was an unusual crowd gathered at the base of the first floor stairs, Yu managed to steer himself around the crowd, taking his place behind it and waiting for the members at the front to awkwardly shuffle out of the way, the whole group lurched forward and he suddenly saw what all the commotion was.

_Miss Yasogami High Beauty Pageant? We never got these kind of things in my old school, it was far too posh…I wonder who…  
_"_Master! Is that-?" _The dragon seemed in pain, as if that pain in its tail was causing it immense difficulty. _Grow up Kohryu, you are a several thousand year old celestial dragon! Although the pain you're feeling must be the same as Yosuke getting critical nut shots from Chie.  
_"_Be glad I'm not born of a shadow, you'd be feeling this too, even if you lack a tail in the true sense."_

He had tuned out the dragon's voice as he changed his mind on the food he was seeking; Yosuke appeared and told him to head to the roof. Yu was amused watching Chie chew out Yosuke; having figured – much like Yu himself – Yosuke was behind it.  
"_Master, perhaps I should stay with Naoto." _ Yu remained silent, hoping the dragon understood that as a meaning to say yes.

It felt like a zio spell, or a hit to her skull, she simply winced, remaining silent as the dragon eased its way into her thoughts. _What are you doing here?  
_"_My purpose, now don't mind me." _The dragon growled softly.

"…Seriously? Must have been something I overlooked in the fine print…" Yosuke just shot himself in the foot, and as if responding to the turn her stomach made the dragon snarled in the back of her mind, silenced by her shadow, who was knelt down, quietly and patiently listening to the voices on the outside.  
"_You are incredibly in control of your emotions, your blood is boiling, your stomach turned and yet…you remain expressionless" _The dragon growled softly, his voice echoing in her unusually clear mind.

Whilst she had allowed herself to listen to the dragon in her head they had all turned to Kanji. He nervously caught a glance at her face then panicked, a look of confusion adorned her features.  
"_Stupid foolish boy…" _the dragon remarked. _What? Hey dragon do you know why he does that?  
_"_I can not say m'lady, I am not entirely certain, I'm sure my master knows, but I am bound by promises to him, much like I am to you. One of those is not to give you unfair knowledge of your friends." _The dragon plumed smoke before settling down against the whiteness in her mind, getting comfortable, infuriating her slightly.

Eventually her cold logic set in and she rationalized she didn't have much of a choice.  
"It doesn't seem fitting for someone like me to get up on stage." She said aloud. It seemed to annoy the dragon that she wouldn't rise to look around, or notice the sympathetic looks she was getting. She didn't register what Kanji had said to her, she was too busy trying to focus through the cloud of annoyance and stress she had begun to put herself under as Kanji begged, inevitably, she felt like she had to back down, her back to the wall she admitted she had nothing she could change.

She had managed to excuse herself from the preparations for the culture festival her class was making. She had considered waiting around for the dragon's master to appear, but the dragon had mentioned his master seemed preoccupied.  
"I sensed you may need me at your side tonight, you are strong enough to at least keep the dream going for a while." She had been lying on her bed, her body no longer responding to her call, as if the dragon had taken control, all she could manage was to wiggle her toes before she fell into a slumber.  
"This feels so strange." She fought back the urge to struggle, knowing it would reduce her chances of talking to the dragon, or worse cause her pain.  
"I do apologise, you are tired; normally you would be able to move." The dragon was hovering over her again. "I wanted to check you were ok?"  
"Why?"  
"Because it is a friendly thing to do, my dear little human." It growled. "I sensed all the stress and panic in your body."

"I can't hide it." She sighed, resigned to the fact this beast could tell all about her.  
"I don't know what I find more distressing, your belittling of yourself or your stress at Kanji."  
"I do not understand that boy. He is difficult, he doesn't understand a word that I say and yet he's obsessed with me!" She cried out.  
"He is not of your concern right now, nor is he of mine, but should we have time. I would be happy to listen to your grievances." She could not move away as the dragon came to rest alongside her, looking over her, the beads from its claws released, hovering around its head. "Sleep may do you some good too."  
"I don't think you are a spy anymore." Naoto declared. "You made me a promise, I know you didn't break it. That is important. I still don't believe you are the same monster persona he has though."  
"Thank you." It bowed. "And it is a step; I do not know how to prove myself in that sense."

Somehow, the beast, with much the same eloquence and expression of its master had encouraged her to feel more confident about the pageant. The dragon noticed her usual quick intelligence was slowing, exhaustion finally clawing at her.  
"Enjoy a restful night, allow my companions in the sky to permit darkness in this world and a restful sleep." His smoke engulfed her, she didn't resist as the whiteness faded and she fell into an even deeper slumber.

-x-x-

Chie had been hovering around her locker, when she came to school the next day, almost passing by her as she wondered how the dragon had faded from her thoughts during her sleep.  
"Hey Naoto-kun, check this out." Before Naoto had chance to register what was said, she found herself grabbed by the wrist and pulled across to a new bulletin board. "A drag contest, think we should enter Yosuke?" She added the name to the list.  
"That's hardly fair." Naoto removed the pen from her satchel, adding the names 'Kanji Tatsumi' and 'Yu Nurakami' to the list as well. "They did agree it was a good idea after all."

-x-x-

"Teddie if you don't hold still, they're going to end up stabbing you in the eye." Naoto grumbled, leaving him to the will of the drama class, amongst which she knew was a friend of her senpai's.  
"I thought you were meant to be doing this?" He asked, glancing at the girl leaning against the wall cap down over her face.  
"What makes you think I, of all people, know how to apply make-up?" She responded calmly. "I'm sure these girls will make you look as beautiful as they can."

She was actually rather impressed with their handiwork as she waited backstage whilst Teddie went bounding out dressed like the protagonist of the _Alice in Wonderland _novels. She thanked the friend of her senpai's who had introduced herself as "Yumi" and closed her eyes, trepidation starting to flood her.  
"_Detectives face new and difficult situations daily Naoto-kun. As a female masquerading as a man for so long, perhaps it is your difficulty with gender roles that is causing you so much panic, rather than the fear of being on stage." _It felt as if the dragon was whispering against her ear again.  
"You sound like my grampa." She shook herself back to reality and glanced around, thankful that nobody was left backstage. She could register the sound of cheering as Teddie was declared the winner, a sense of pride bubbling in her chest…

…right up until the words "swimsuit contest" left that infernal bear's lips.

-x-x-

"How is she?" Yu asked aloud, glancing at his reflection in the mirror, knowing the restroom was empty, happy to be back in his normal clothes. It wasn't the first time he had worn a dress, but he was praying it would be the last.  
"_Her anxieties are rife master, I do not think her confidence is there."_

She had to find a way to break Rise's vice grip on her arm as they were changing. The other girls in the Investigation Team had all changed and were trying to restrain her, pulling at her wrists before trying to unbutton her shirt. _Dragon! Help me! I don't know how or what but please! _She begged, her shadow self doing the same. She could only hope that somehow the dragon had heard.  
"_Master, she isn't happy here." _The dragon whispered across his mind as they waited for the girls to change swimsuits. _"She wants to get free._" The dragon was almost pleading, and Yu was convinced he could hear a faint, but fast beating. The dragon was able to hear Naoto's heartbeat, a sound it was able to give to his master.

An idea brewed in his mind. Back in Tokyo, he had an older relative who attended his previous school with him; she had explained that the metal frames in their school hall were designed so that things could be suspended to them, such as curtains and backdrops. Admittedly, that was in a fancy private school in Tokyo – where space was at a premium, but if he could get up onto the frames unseen, he could pull or cut something lose to scare the other girls into letting her go.  
"Where you going?" Kanji called after him.  
"I'll be back soon." He couldn't get into the right side of the backstage area, where the girls were changing, so instead he managed to charm his way past the girls guarding the stage door and into the left.

Sure enough there was a criss-cross of metal frames suspended to the ceiling, several of which went behind the wooden set of the beauty contest, and across the hall. He swallowed hard as he took a glance to see if anybody could see him before creeping out onto the metal bar, keeping his eyes straight ahead, carefully taking small steps to cross the frame, noting the ropes tied to the frames as he went.

He swallowed hard as he glanced down, praying he would not be seen looking down on the girls, especially mid changing. Thankfully, they were in a changing room erected several beams to his right. He nervously searched through his pockets for something, his hand settling on a swiss army knife Teddie had looted from Naoto's pockets after she threatened him last. His eyes settled on his prize.

"_Naoto-kun, can you hear me?" _The dragon called across her mind. _I-I'm a little busy dragon! _She tried to pull free and slap Rise's hand from her shirt. _"Your chance to get out will come, that curtain will fall slightly, freaking the others out, run whilst you have the chance." _She felt her breathing steady slightly before realising if the dragon knew what was about to happen its master would be behind it, she resisted the girls even harder, trying to stop them opening her shirt.

Because all the girls were busy pulling at her, none of them had noticed the figure crossing the beam above them in the darkness. He resisted the urge to steal a glance down before preparing to run, hoping his balance would not falter as he would have to attempt to cross the beams to the back of the hall, and around to his left again. He drew the knife, the entire curtain dropping down, causing the other girls to gasp before screaming, Naoto took her chance, fleeing as soon as Rise's grip loosened. The screaming had attracted enough attention for him to slip away across the beams unnoticed.

"Whoa man, where the hell were you?" Yosuke laughed at the confused look marring Yu's features as to why everyone was chattering amongst themselves.  
"Getting a drink of water." He shook the half empty water bottle he had bothered to pick up and pour on the plant by the door to make it look like he had been drinking it. Soon the contest simmered down, the votes were ready to be cast, Kanji still disappointed that Naoto had managed to get free.  
"I'm voting for Naoto." Yu tapped Kanji on the shoulder before manoeuvring through the crowd.

_Where is she? _He felt a growl rumble deep in his head and in his stomach, he knew all he had to do was listen to the dragon to know where she was.

-x-x-

"Hey Naoto-kun! Are you there!" He called up the tallest tree in the school grounds.  
"S-senpai?" She called down in shock.  
"Are you ok?"  
"I'm fine. I take it the dragon told you where I was?" She called down, before rustling leaves sounded, she was climbing lower. "Are you climbing up?"  
"No, I'm not too fond of heights."  
"But then how did you manage to cut down that curtain?" She had snared him with her line of questioning.  
"Ok allow me to rephrase." He reached for a strong branch, braced himself against the tree and struggled up, taking his seat there, she came to settle a few branches higher and to his left, her back against the trunk. "I am ok with metal framework, being so heavy and bolted on so well it means it can take my weight easily. Trees are nature's climbing frame, there's no guarantee I can climb higher without a branch snapping."  
"Not so perfect after all." She smirked. "Afraid of falling of all things." She threw her head back against the trunk of the tree.  
"A thank you would be nice."  
"I'd like to know how and why you did that." She responded equally as calmly. "Thank you, either way."

He climbed down from the tree, a smirk gracing his features as she jumped down from the branch she was on, hanging down from it and allowing herself to drop the few inches between herself and the floor.  
"There you are! I'll dare you run away like that!" Rise scowled, running ahead of the rest of the group who had also gone searching for Naoto.  
"I'm sorry." She hung her head low, brim of her cap covering her face.  
"You won!" They declared.  
"W-what?" Her face grew a deep red. Yu took this as his moment to slip away, his features still showing his amusement.

-x-x-

Luckily the rest of the culture festival had passed without much more hassle on her behalf. In the late afternoon, Nanako and Dojima appeared and immediately she was finding herself embroiled in a new plan to go to spend time at the Amagi Inn, not that she minded too much. A hot spring would at least relieve her aching shoulders.

They'd stopped poking and prodding her after a while, to say it made her uncomfortable was an understatement. She nervously grabbed for her neck, despite knowing the chain wasn't there.

"_Am I permitted to talk?" The growl rumbled. "You are the only one that will see me."  
_"_Silly Mr. Dragon, shouldn't you just talk to Nao-chan like you are now?" Her shadow's voice was chiming in._

_We can talk…but I can't physically talk to you without looking insane…_

"Don't you think the stars are really pretty Naoto-kun?" Nanako asked as she swam by on another lap around the pool guided by Yukiko. Naoto looked up to the sky, the stars bright against the dark blue background of the clear night sky.  
"They are." Naoto smiled as she watched the two girls continue on.  
"Most beautiful, aren't they mistress?" the gold dragon, in all its glory hovered above her, the details of its ornate horns clear for the first time in a while. "You seem more rested now."

_That's because they've stopped poking me dragon. My name is Naoto-kun by the way, and you are NOT to tell your master what you see here._

"Why would I want to do that?" it dropped so its head skimmed the edge of the water to her right, the rest of its body submerging with it. She noted as the others ignored it and continued to swim and play. "You are ok, after the pageant?"

_No…I won't be ok about that for a while._

"You look fine without the hat on, you look fine as a girl. It's your image of a detective that is the problem, not your gender. You should embrace that and be proud. You are certainly of a fine form." It commented, which made her blush.  
"Stupid! Get out of here!" She snarled, not realising she had said that allowed.  
"Who are you talking to Naoto-kun?" Nanako turned to her genuinely concerned, a look of admiration in her eyes.  
"Nobody Nanako-chan, I'm sorry." She shuffled nervously as she felt the dragon's breath against her arm.

"That girl seems to look up to you…Nanako-chan does not see your insecurities. She sees a girl who is kind, and strong willed despite going through something similar to her. She is the pride and joy of my master. Please, keep her safe tonight. Also you may want to dive under for a while soon. I sense my master is closer than I expected." With a bow, it disappeared into thin air.

As soon as she heard the door slide open, she headed to the dragon's advice. With the water distorting all her sense of sound, she could still hear the anguished screaming and eventual retreat of the men in the team.  
"Naoto-kun, you can hold your breath underwater for so long!" Nanako declared as Naoto resurfaced, her body scolding hot and her hair flat against her head, brushing at her shoulders now it was devoid of volume.  
"I think we need to get you out Nanako-chan, the heat will get to you soon." She coughed, spitting out water as she did.  
"Okay." She reached for the older girl's hand and followed her out to get changed.  
"I will deal with Nanako-chan, please enjoy yourselves."

Nanako was dressed for bed, Naoto back in her normal casual attire, a blue dress shirt, blue slacks and her yellow tie, the only thing missing was the hat, which Nanako wore atop her own head, proudly marching around declaring herself a detective. Naoto had to smile, the girl had been through so much, losing her mother less than two years ago, and yet she was already stronger than Naoto had been at that age – despite it being more than four since hers died by the time she reached Nanako's age.  
"Nanako, shouldn't you be in bed?" She glanced up from underneath the hat that was too large for her to see the shadow of her big bro looming over Naoto.  
"Good evening senpai." He invited himself to join her and Nanako at the table, sitting to Naoto's left, smiling as if he hadn't walked into the springs with the girls bathing earlier. Still, if he was going to forget then that was fine by her.

"Big bro, Naoto-chan bought me hot chocolate!" She declared.  
"Did you remember to thank her?"  
"Of course I did!"  
"What do you need from us?" Naoto asked, her professional tone now back in her voice.  
"I came to return this." He placed the swiss army knife he had taken from Teddie on the desk in front of Naoto. "You wanted an answer as to how I got you free, there." He gestured.  
"Got you free?" Nanako looked confused. "But big bro got you a present! He must like you a lot! He never gets me presents." She beamed.  
"T-that isn't it Nanako!" Naoto protested, hastily stuffing the device back into her pocket.  
"Nanako, it isn't a present, it belonged to Naoto-kun, I merely…acquired it for a while and I do too buy you presents!" She glanced to her side to notice he was blushing slightly. "Drink up and go to bed soon Nana-chan." She nodded in response.

"Did I say something wrong earlier?" She had snuggled herself into Naoto's futon, apparently feeling lonely in her own, across the room, separated by three empty futons.  
"No Nanako-chan, why would you think that?"  
"Well big bro and you looked really shocked." Naoto shuffled to give the younger girl more room under the covers.  
"You just surprised us is all." Naoto reassured her. A heavy silence filled the room.

"Big bro says your parents died when you were little, like my mum did, in a car accident." Nanako's sad tone made Naoto more alert.  
"That's right, I was only three, I moved in with grampa not long after."  
"I miss my mom."  
"I miss my mom too, it's ok." Naoto sat up, facing the younger girl. "I miss my dad too, but I know they didn't mean to leave me here, just like I know your mom didn't mean to leave you here."  
"Are your mom and dad in heaven?"  
"Yes. I like to think they watch me every day, and smile at how much I've grown and what I've achieved." Naoto smiled. _Or at least, I hope they do now…  
_"Do you think mom is watching me?"  
"I am most certain." She waited for a while, Nanako shuffled forward, wrapping her arms around the detective, climbing into her lap, Naoto could hear what sounded like a soft sob welling up inside the girl's throat. "Don't cry, tell me about your mom."

Nanako told her all about her mother and what she did, in return Naoto told her briefly about her parents, and that she had gotten sick after they died. She reminded Nanako that she was strong, and her mother and father are proud of her. Before long the girl had gotten tired, and fallen asleep in the older girl's arms, who carefully placed her under the covers before shuffling down them herself.  
"Your mom and dad must be really proud Nao-chan, when I grow up, I hope I'm as strong as you…" She whispered as sleep finally took a hold.

Something snapped in the back of her brain, something her shadow self did not leave un-noticed. Still, she settled on a content smile before returning to silence. That night, as Naoto contemplated what the young cousin of her senpai had said, she was convinced she had felt a warmth envelope her and just before her eyes closed, she had seen the golden dragon who she considered a loyal friend.

"Your walls around me are weakening Naoto-kun, does that mean you are growing to trust me more?" It whispered to itself, puffing gentle smoke as it watched both the girls fall asleep. Its head snapped to the door as he heard loud giggling and the door sliding, before fading to return to his master's steed.


	5. Hurt and Comfort

"What's the note?" Yu asked, passing her by the shoe lockers staring intently at the paper. "A challenge to a duel?"  
"A love letter. Most likely written by a female." He knew she was strangely indifferent at best, but even he had been surprised by how quickly she disregarded the note.

_Just a silly little note, keep an eye on her with it dragon_ he felt a deep rumble, affirming the command to Kohyru, testing a theory Margaret had suggested in the Velvet Room to see if the Kohyru they both saw were one and the same.

"_She finds it hard to deal with small talk, yet she is most excitable, you can tell by her tone, and the gentle tugging at your sleeve to jog faster to the flood plains with her."_

"Senpai, are you ok?" Naoto asked, concern in her voice.

"Just an inner voice being difficult." He noticed she had slowed to a walking pace, as if suddenly aware of how her actions of pulling him out the school must have appeared. She had curiosity in her eyes.  
"If you are certain senpai."

Whilst they had been initially interested in the content of the cards, and the break in at the Shirogane estate as well as finding her silly, if rather endearing, detective tools, the talk soon reverted back to the topic of Kohyru.  
"Are the ones we talk to even the same?" Yu asked, knowing he was giving away the game slightly about his earlier request of his persona. "Maybe we should ask him to tell us something about the other one that only he could see or know from being around us?"  
"Senpai…" she suddenly remembered about how the dragon had read her medical records.  
"I've already asked my question of him, well two now that you mention it. He declined my first."

"He declined your first question, what was it?" She took a sip of her water, glancing at him, then behind him to the grassy banks of the floodplain, as if waiting to see Kohyru behind him.  
"I asked if you were really in good health. He told me he would not reveal the details of your medical records. I guess I was right, he is born of my honesty and integrity."  
"So he kept that promise then." She said off-handedly, noticing the curious look from Yu. "That…should have been an inside thought, well…I guess that could be seen as evidence towards the theory the dragon we see and speak to as one and the same. But…"  
"But what?" He tried to gently nudge her line of thought along.  
"I can not call to him when around you, I do not hear his voice, or that of my own shadow."

"You heard him that day when you told me about him and at the pageant."  
"Hearing him and asking him to talk to me are two different things. It may have something to do with my health. Now I am healthy again he can't bring himself forward to talk to me or ask him to speak to me."  
"I hear him clear." Yu mentioned. "But he _is _my persona, and a part of _my _heart."  
"Kohyru is truly an enigma." She smirked slightly, a brief glimpse of curled lips and a faint change in voice were all that Yu saw from her. "It seems I do not have the control of him that you do, he must only be able to focus on one of us when we are next to each other, in this case he has obviously gravitated towards you – his master." She was slightly envious and wary of Yu for his calm exterior and control over the persona that had illegally invaded her own thoughts.  
"May I continue walking you home?" Yu asked.  
"No that is not necessary senpai, I should be returning home soon anyways. Yakushiji-san will be coming this evening to help me collect my things and move back into the estate."  
"I forgot that was today, do you need help?"  
"I do not need the help of a man to do a job I can do myself. Woman or no." She huffed.  
"I wasn't trying to be patronising there." He pointed out, making her blush slightly.  
"Sorry senpai." She turned on her heels and left as soon as the words left her mouth.

-x-x-

"Strange, I don't sense his presence as clearly anymore." Yu said to the air around him, as he tried to focus on the call of that golden dragon.  
"Big bro, concentrate." Nanako clapped her hands together, releasing Yu from his day dream. "You promised you'd show me a magic trick."  
"Of course Nana-chan, I'm sorry. But just one ok? It's already well past your bed time." He glanced at the silver watch on his wrist. _Dojima would kill me if he saw me playing with Nanako at 11pm._

-x-x-

There was a sigh of relief as she sank down into the soft silk and bed linen of her familiar childhood bed. Her mother and her westernisation of the house had meant all the rooms had proper beds in, rather than futons, how she missed her mother.

Her grandfather and Yakushiji had aided her in returning things to their rightful place in her room, especially after the break in and now with all her additional belongings. The double bed she had slept in all her childhood was merely a small part of the huge space her grandfather had granted her as a bedroom. It had its own independent bathroom, which she remembered being built in when she was on the verge of being a teenager, as her grandfather felt it was more appropriate she had her own space. Her closet, whilst sparse inside, occupied a large chunk of one wall. A bookshelf spanned the length of the wall between the door to enter her room and the door, containing all her favourite detective novels, the ones whose copies could be duplicated from her grandfather's study at least. Amongst mounds of papers, homework, models and gadgetry, a large desk, her laptop and a work table would be found. She was also blessed with having a large screen television and a sofa at the base of her bed – a dream room for some of her friends, she was certain. The room was simply a reminder to her how small she felt in a big grown up world.

"I don't know how to summon you." She had never tried to deliberately call the dragon forth, and she did not mind if she did so in the dream world, or if he appeared as that broken image. "I guess…come forth Kohyru?" She felt a pang of pain as if something was trying to force out, but the pain subsided quick, and she was still alone. "If…I can't talk to you here, at least let us speak in the dream world."

-x-x-

The whiteness gone this time, she could see familiar surroundings, the dragon, herself and her shadow were at the Samegawa Floodplains, sat under the gazebo. Her shadow self nibbled nervously at her sleeve as she watched butterflies float past.  
"This is…a very intricate dream." She noticed the details, the carving in the top corner of the bench, the chipped paintwork of the gazebo itself, the more solid image of the golden dragon. She reached out as the dragon lowered its head, to her surprise, she felt cold gold scales and hot steam, it was solid in the dream. "Why here?"  
"I wanted to prove to you that the Kohyru my master and yourself have seen and summoned forward are one and the same."

"Why did you not listen to my call in the waking world, you appear as a flickering image before me when I don't need your presence…how do I call you forward if I need you?"  
"If you wish to call me forward in the waking world, you must do it with conviction. I can be summoned deep in your mind, where you can communicate with me without the need for words, or I can appear before you as a flickering image should your thoughts be too chaotic – as they often are – to establish a clear line of communication."  
"Chaotic thoughts!?" She growled.  
"Calm yourself. I feel the mind of a detective should always be this way."  
"Not true." She fell quiet. "I think it has something to do with my anxieties." She bit her lip.  
"No need for shyness" the dragon raised its head, adjusting its body under the bench, catching her feet with its body as it did. "I have my master's answer; I need you to ask me a question to prove I am one and the same."

"Tell me…tell me…what senpai thinks about the phantom thief thing." It was more of a statement than a question. "Something only you would know about how he feels."  
"An interesting request." It stared out across the plains, into the white void beyond the bench where they were sat. "He feels the same level of excitement as you, he likes seeing the spark in your eyes, the excitable pulling at his sleeve as you charge headfirst into finding the items you lost. He likes that smile on your face, and the look of relief when you find the items."  
"I…" She blushed. "T-thank you Kohyru." Bowing head slightly towards him. "What did he ask you to do for him?"  
"I'll tell him what you ask me, if you expect me to tell you what he asked me." The dragon was trying to broker a deal with her.  
"That is fine."  
"He asked me to watch what you did with that letter."  
"I fed it into grampa's shredder, what did he think I'd do?"  
"But you read it first." It pointed out. "The first line at least."

There was a heavy silence in the air for a while. Her shadow had become her persona, buzzing around excitedly, chasing the butterflies.  
"Do you want any help?" It asked, taking a brief moment to stop swinging that ridiculous light sword at the harmless butterflies.  
"It is quite ok Sukuna-Hikona" The small persona appeared between herself and the dragon.  
"Can we train with senpai and Kohyru soon?" It pleaded. "After all, we are healthy, and I know you want to try my powers."  
"Is that so? I will speak to master about it." The dragon snorted a large plume of yellow smoke.  
"Could you wait until after we get my things back from that thief?"  
"Someone else could be taken before then." It warned.  
"I am well aware of that risk."  
"That sounds like a great idea Kohyru." The small persona balanced on the end of the dragon's snout.  
"Did I not warn you to get off?" He blew dark smoke, causing the persona to tumble from its snout.

-x-x-

Nanako…poor little Nanako.  
"My dear…there is nothing you can do." Her grandfather had a firm grip on her shoulder, the dragon's voice was completely silent, even her own shadow was silent. In mourning. She had died.  
"I just…" Naoto blinked back tears. "I…"  
"Your friend, he is in mourning, he will be suffering."

_"Naoto!"_ The growl, it caused her to moan in pain.  
"Nao-chan, what's wrong?" Her grandfather asked, alarmed and holding her shoulders tight.  
_"Naoto, listen to me!"_ She shut her eyes focusing on the source of the growl. "_Can you hear me?"  
_"I…grampa, get Yakushiji-san, tell him to get the car."  
"You aren't seriously talking about going to his house are you?" He immediately realised what she was about to do. "I do not think it wise."  
"Please grampa." She pleaded, the pain in her head subsiding as the dragon tried to claw its way forward through the haze of painful thoughts.

_"He is hurting."_ The beast called out.  
"Well obviously, I would be worried if he wasn't."  
" I am concerned, his heart is closed. I am…I am causing him hurt calling to you." The dragon faltered. She understood more of its presence as she grew closer to its master. "Help him." And with that, the voice was lost.

"I will not need you to collect me." She slammed the door of the SUV shut.  
"Naoto-sama, is that-"  
"Just. Listen." She growled, not even glancing back to the secretary as she rushed towards the door of the Dojima household.

-x-x-

How long had she been banging on that door?

An hour? Two possibly.

"Senpai! Please!" She called out. "Open the door!" She knew it was useless, he hadn't responded before. "I know you're in there." She sank to her knees, holding back a sob, the cold was getting at her, she clung to herself to hold off the shivering.

_Just a stupid girl…_ she let out an audible sigh. _Why would he be glad I was a girl? I'm still useless…_

"Useless or no, that has nothing to do with your gender." She felt a calling, held her head to the door, it was Kohyru's growl, audible in her waking world.

-x-x-

Before Nanako's sickness, before her death, Naoto and her senpai had grown close. He had told her he was glad she was a girl, and that he loved her, she had not known how to react. That night, the dragon came to her aid, she spoke for what felt like hours, the beast listening intently, her shadow self curled up against the dragon's tail. It had not said a word for all that time, knowing that she could come to her own conclusions as to what to feel.

It was after her garbled ranting that the dragon explained its presence in her mind more. Elaborating what her senpai had previously told her.

He was there to act as a comfort, a reassurance. He would not leave her alone, that was what she feared most. She had accidentally triggered its presence when she began to panic in the laboratory. It wanted to help her with her confidence, understand her relationships to the others. It had helped her understand her own persona's abilities and feel in tune with her other self. She never wanted to admit she needed its presence, to encourage all the good in her. He still would not explain his purpose.

It was her turn to return the favour.


	6. Saving Senpai's Sanity

With a renewed force she slammed her fist into the door. She would not take no for an answer. She could hear Kohyru calling, sounding in pain as it did.  
"If you don't let me in, I'll break the lock!" She cried through. "I know you're in there, I can hear Kohryu, I can sense it, let me in!" She fell through the door as it swung open, grasping for the thing in front of her, catching the tails of the blazer. She blushed, pulled herself back to her feet and gasped at the state of her senpai.

"Thank you." She coughed. "I'm…"  
"You wouldn't leave." Was all he said, she ducked under his arm before he shut her out.

She caught a glimpse of the flickering image, the golden dragon that had been calling to her was fading.  
"I'm sorry." It disappeared entirely. "It is…your responsibility." With that she heard a faint whisper from her persona in the back of her head, Kohyru would not be speaking with her, this made her persona low.

She sat down on the cushion which she knew belonged to Dojima, aware that Nanako's cushion was almost sacred right now. Yu was pale, bar his face, which was red and tear stained. His uniform was ruined from lord knows what, black marks stained the shirt.  
"The dragon, it summoned you here?"  
"Y-yes senpai, it said you were in pain…_it _was in pain itself" She let her voice hang in the air, aware of how stupid she sounded. _Of course he's in pain. Nanako is…  
_"Of course I'm in pain…she was…she was a sister to me…"

She wasn't sure how it happened, but what came out of his mouth was a guttural cry. She was convinced that the whole neighbourhood would have heard.  
"Let it out senpai." She encouraged, trying to be as comforting as the dragon's presence had proved to be for her. She knelt before him.

No words were said, no sleep was had. The early hours were creeping up, the sun clawing at the horizon.  
"…phone." His voice was hoarse.  
"What?" She felt a buzzing against her leg. "My phone? Oh I didn't…"  
"Naoto-kun, is that you?"  
"Speaking." She was certain the voice was that of Yosuke.  
"Thank god, I rang your house number first, your grandpa said you'd wondered off! Where are you?"  
"I hardly see why that is of importance. You are ringing me at 2am, may I ask why?" _Thank you grampa for not telling them where I am…_

"It's Nanako!" He sounded excited.  
"Nanako? What about her?" She noticed the sudden spark in Yu's eyes. "Give me just a second." She pressed the loudspeaker button on the phone. "Please continue." She signalled to Yu to keep quiet.  
"She…she started breathing again!" A sense of relief washed over her. As she closed her eyes she noticed her phone snatched from the table.  
"Why didn't they call me?"  
"Partner? What? Is Naoto…with you?"  
"Answer the question!" He said impatiently.  
"They tried, your phone is off, you listed me as another emergency contact." Then the line went dead. He had ended the call.  
"Senpai?" She was angry that he had taken her phone, alerted the others to them being together, but she felt warm at the sudden relief in him.

_Eyes never lie, that's what Grampa always said. He seems relieved, the pain is gone._

"The hospital, I need to go to the…" He tried to stand, sinking back onto his knees. "…now…" He tried again, much to his own dismay, he sank back down again.  
"You are exhausted senpai." She went to stand, feeling her limbs protest as she did. "Let me help…" His weight on her was difficult, with no sleep her muscles could not support him. "Yakushiji-san can take you to the hospital, I'm sure he won't mind being woken." She helped him down onto the sofa.

"He won't be long." She closed her phone and turned back to her senpai. "Maybe you should change, Nanako-chan wouldn't want to see you like this. It'll take a while for the car to get down here." She had noticed that Yakushiji had struggled to get the SUV around some of the tight corners of the residential district. He would most likely bring a different car.  
"I know." He struggled up, his legs in pain.  
"I'll make us some tea or something, wake us both up."  
"In the kitchen, the cupboard by your feet under the coffee machine." He said sleepily, before trying to hoist himself up the stairs.

"You are not as socially awkward as you seem." She knew that voice, a reassured smile passed her lips. "You did my master a service, his heart is open. Rested."  
"I didn't do anything…I didn't _know _what to do." She brewed the coffee in Dojima's coffee machine.  
"That was why I compelled you to come. You would listen, not try to make him see his difficulties were irrelevant." She could sense the dragon's head at her shoulder; feel hot breath against her ear.  
"H-how did you-?" When she turned, she was alone.  
"Is he disturbing you again?" She had turned back to the coffee machine, pouring the black drink into the cups she had found beside the coffee bag. "I could see him next to you."  
"I'm still not used to his voice, his presence." She remarked, facing the wall. "He…It's strange…I missed his voice, it was rather lonely." She sighed. "You saw him but I thought he could only be with one of us?"

She felt a weight on her head, and an arm around her waist. As soon as it was felt, it had disappeared again, along with the desire for an answer.  
"Thank you." Was all that was said, as an arm reached beside her to reach for the mug. She noticed the similarity in the presence of Yu and his dragon, the same hot breath against her ear, the same sense of foreboding in her body in the fleeting moment he was there.  
"For what senpai?"  
"For listening and for waiting." He glanced at the door, noticing her head turn to follow his gaze, even without facing him; she knew what he was looking at. "That damn dragon, it seems fond of you." He backed away, seeing her body relax as the space between them increased.

"I'm sure that is not true senpai." She wanted to believe the dragon hadn't formed an attachment to her. "I should warn you, the coffee may be a little strong. I make my grampa's coffee occasionally; he drinks it so black it's like rocket fuel." He grimaced a little at the bitter taste as he held the cup to his lips.  
"I don't think I'll be sleeping in a while." He stumbled across the room, dropping down onto the sofa, barely avoiding spilling the coffee down his clean shirt.  
"I'm sorry senpai." She added milk to her own before taking a seat on the other end of the sofa.  
"Don't call me senpai, my name is Yu, Yu-kun is fine."

The knocking on the door was far too heavy for Yakushiji-san, with a trace of nervousness in her, she paced across the room. The man she answered the door to was taller and broader than the secretary, with thinner, grayer hair.  
"Grampa, what are you doing here?"  
"Yakushiji-san was exhausted, not fit to drive." Yu emerged behind her, curious to meet the patriarch of the Shirogane family. "You must be Yu Narukami." He looked over his granddaughter to the taller silver haired boy.  
"Yes, Shirogane-san." By instinct he bowed his head slightly.  
"There is no need for the pleasantries." He stood aside, allowing Naoto to exit the house and glance at the car her grandfather had decided to drive.

"Grampa…why did you bring the Cadillac?" She asked curiously, the old car was barely seen outside their garage.  
"I fancied a change, and Yakushiji was complaining the tight corners here were not suitable for the SUV, this old thing barely ever leaves the garage, and I appreciate the challenge of driving this old beast around the area. Although the curious looks through some of the windows, and the young woman asking me just up the street who the man was at the door of Dojima-san's house was were most interesting."  
"Wow." Yu was shocked at how spacious the car was on the inside, Naoto followed in after him.  
"Grampa, you could have picked a less obvious car. Especially as we're driving around at three in the morning." She was rewarded a soft laugh from her grandfather. "I thought you were going off on a case in the morning…"  
"I was, I will not be leaving until the evening. It will take approximately fifteen minutes to get to the hospital, until then, enjoy yourselves."  
Yu was asleep the moment after he got in, Naoto had noticed, pushing him gently away from her as his head rested on her shoulder.

"He will keep rolling that way as I turn corners." Her grandfather's voice was soft.  
"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" She scowled, noticing the slight smirk gracing her grandfather's lips.  
"Not necessarily the situation you are in…the relaxation in your voice, the relief in your eyes has returned. Were you not hiding from him a few days ago?" A deep blush graced her features, she huffed and hid her face under the hat. "There is not much that escapes my notice Nao-chan. I heard your mumbling as I passed your bedroom, I heard his name. Nothing more, nothing less. I don't know what happened, but it seemed to weigh heavily on your mind."

_"Is he referring to?"_ She felt a spark in her head, wincing she let the voice continue. _"He is…he's referring to the knife thing, and your confession isn't he?"_ _Shut. Up. Now is not the time Kohyru.  
_"Headache again Nao-chan?" Her grandfather glanced up in the rear view mirror.  
"It's nothing, stress I suppose."

Her grandfather and her had waited outside the room, Nanako was asleep as far as she could tell, Dojima had been wheeled in to watch over his sleeping daughter, Yu was quietly holding her hand, relieved she was alive.  
"We should leave them be Grampa." Naoto had to stand on tiptoes to look through the door. "I feel awkward just standing here."  
"I agree, shall we leave." He offered his arm to her, a traditional gentleman, he felt it appropriate to escort his granddaughter, knowing how empty the halls were, she accepted the offer.

"You're leaving?" He called down the hall, making her and her grandfather turn to face him. She stumbled back a little as she noticed the dragon, coiled tightly around him; head bowed slightly, its features showing its gratitude to her. She glanced at her grandfather, whose expression gave that he did not see the creature.  
"I think it would be best if we did." She nodded. "Grampa, would you be willing to bring me back here during visiting hours?"  
"Of course." He reached into his pocket, searching for the key.  
"Thank you Naoto-kun." Yu smiled glancing to the dragon he knew only she and he could see. _Watch over her for me._

-x-x-

"Hey did you see that really cool old car in the car park?" Rise bounded in after Kanji and Yosuke.  
"Who in this town would own something like that? And where is Naoto-kun today, she didn't come to school?" Just as they said it, they stopped dead behind Yukiko and Chie.  
"Why are we?" Yosuke looked over the top of Chie, leaning on her shoulders.  
Further down the hall, Naoto's grandfather was talking with her.

"You are aware of the attention that car brings with you, aren't you grampa?" The old man chuckled in response. "I sometimes am amazed I am related to a chauvinist like you." She smiled.  
"A chauvinist, that is harsh Nao-chan." He removed her cap, ruffled her hair and placed it on straight. "You forgot this by the way." He held out a silver chain, which she quickly snatched from his hand. "I will be setting off in an hour, you will be ok getting home?"  
"I do know what a bus is." She turned to face the sound of a high squeak from the base of the hall. "Oh they're here."  
"Hm? Ah your other friends, I presume. I shall take my leave." The man took one last look at his granddaughter before walking by the girl's friends and calling. "Your scooter will be in the garage, Yakushiji-san retrieved it from the repair shop this morning."

"Whoa, does that old car belong to you?!"  
"The pre-war Cadillac? It's my grampa's yes." Naoto nodded.  
"Hey so…why were you with senpai last night?" Rise asked.  
"That's hardly important right now!" Kanji growled. "Let's go see Nanako-chan."  
"Wait." Naoto held out her arm, not releasing the chain she still clutched tight hanging down. "Nanako-chan can only have two visitors at a time; I had been waiting here with my grampa after Dojima-san took my place."  
"Whoa, that is one big gem in that ring on the chain." Teddie's eyes sparkled. "Those little gems are _real _pretty too."

The ring on the chain she held in her hand was her mother's engagement ring, she hated jewellery, but she was always sure to wear the ring on the chain, hidden beneath all her clothes.  
"This?" She blushed before hastily pushing the chain into her pocket.

"Has your grandfather left, Naoto-kun?" Dojima had been wheeled out by a nurse.  
"Yes, I'm sorry Dojima-san, but he is leaving for a case tonight, he mentioned to me he has not spoken to you in a while. He also said you offered me an apology for the way I was treated at the station."  
"Ah…sorry about that."  
"It's ok. Is Nanako-chan ok?"  
"She is fine, I have told Yu to leave once you guys arrived, it is only fair you spend time with her too." He sighed as the nurse fussed over him. "I will be returning to my room."

"How many cups of coffee can one small thing like you drink?" The dragon, looking like more of a solid image than normal was beside her as she got another drink of coffee from the machine. "Do you even sleep?"  
"I haven't slept in a while." She yawned. "Has he asked you to watch me?"  
"Ah, well even if he hadn't I would have wanted to speak to you." It growled gently. "My master is at ease with you, especially now he knows he didn't scare you off with what he said at the shrine, and now of course, you told him how you really feel."  
"I…uh…it doesn't really seem appropriate to discuss that now." The dragon twisted on its own axis to glance down the hall at the incoming footsteps.  
"Here you are Naoto-kun." Rise cooed, ignoring the dragon's presence, Naoto was thankful that she had wished she was the only one that could see it. "You never answered my question before."

-x-x-

_So tired._ Her head landed with a soft thud as she threw herself down on one of the sofas in their main "entertaining room" as her grandfather referred to it. Several days had passed since Nanako's revival; she was still recovering from the personal shock to her system. She was hungry, yet too tired to pace to the kitchen to get food, she just wanted to lay there in the dark and be at peace.

Her eyes were closed; she was almost asleep when she heard a faint rasping on the door.  
"Master Shirogane?" A maid most likely.  
"My grandfather is away, it is only me."  
"Naoto-sama, there is a gentleman at the gate; I can see him on the camera here." Naoto groaned and moved from the sofa to see what the maid was on about.

It was her senpai. He was looking at the intercom on the gate curiously, reaching to press the button before deciding against it, she could tell he was soaked to the core from the sudden storm that had taken the evening.  
"Ask him to come in as you pass by." She told the maid. "Give him directions to this room."  
"Of course Naoto-sama." The maid bowed, scurrying busily down the pathway.

"The point of visiting someone's home is you are meant to ring the doorbell to let them know you are here." As much as she didn't want the light on, she had flicked the lamps on around the room and had taken a seat in her grandfather's chair.  
"I'm sorry." He chuckled lightly. "I was just a little nervous, I forgot how big you said your house was."  
"It is a place made of bricks and mortar, just like your own." She loosened the tie that was barely clasped around her neck, letting her collar open slightly, revealing the chain she wore around her neck, and a dark blue vest hiding her bindings, before the buttons of her over shirt prevented the outline of her figure to be shown.

"I wondered if you were hungry." He placed a takeout bag on the polished wooden table between the two chairs where they sat. "Consider it a thank you, for the other night." Cautiously, she opened the bag, peering at the stacked boxes inside.  
"Senpai, there is far too much food in here for just two people." She commented. "Are the others coming?"  
"No, I just got a bit carried away…I don't really know what you eat – besides all of my California rolls." He rubbed the back of his neck.  
"This is not an appropriate place to eat food; I don't believe my grandfather would be happy if he saw us eating takeaway food in here." He followed her down a lit hallway to an ornate dining hall.  
"I'll go and find us something to eat off, please, go ahead and open all the boxes, lay them out as you see fit." She blushed. "I-I'll be back soon." Suddenly aware that her body no longer ached, and that Yu also seemed to be showing signs of a lack of sleep and coffee binge, she found herself in the kitchen. She had noticed that tonight, the voice of Kohyru had allowed her to rest, she couldn't help but feel a slight loneliness as she stood in the kitchen, with plates, chopsticks and drinks balanced on top of each other, she wasn't sure if it was Kohyru or its master that she missed.

"There are limited staff members around this evening, Yakushiji-san does most of the work around here and he is still with my grandfather, we should not be disturbed." Her hands were trembling, and thankfully he removed most of the bottles from the top of the pile of things she was carrying.  
"You could have asked me for help." He placed the bottles on the table and took his plate and chopsticks.

Her eyes sparkled at the spread, he had certainly gone overboard, she had only just begun to realise how hungry she was.

-x-x-

"That ring around your neck, it's really pretty." He said, sat on the floor back against the wooden coffee table. He noticed the glint of the silver chain, and the platinum ring inset with a blue gem, and surrounded with much brighter, clearer gems.  
"It…It was my mother's engagement ring." She unclipped it from her neck holding it out in her hand. "I don't care much for jewellery, too high maintenance, but my grampa gave me this ring, he said it was originally my grandma's, he told me to keep it close, to remind me I was born to loving parents."  
"May I see it?" He asked, cautiously holding out his hand. "Don't worry I won't take it, I just want to hold it steady."

She noticed how strange he looked, hair still damp but he was mostly dry showing an interest in an old engagement ring.  
"Does it make you nervous? Me holding it like this?" He noticed.  
"I…a little, I would like it back." She pulled the chain gently, the ring slipped from his grip and she was happy to have it back in its rightful place.  
"Senpai..." She noticed. "Should you not be going home soon?" She noticed the hurt look.  
"I don't really need to head home for anything, do I?" He shrugged.  
"Oh well…" She knew what she wanted to say, but the words would not come out. "I'm sorry…never mind." She smiled.


	7. Night at the Shirogane's Part 1

A/N: I'm off from university for a while so will post more regular updates between working Christmas hours and doing my dissertation thesis :) As always, read, enjoy and review

* * *

She took another glance at her watch, then at him. It wasn't _that _late, and yet he was falling asleep.  
"Senpai, are you ok?" She asked, kneeling down in front of him. "I guess that the last week has really taken its toll on you." She smiled.  
"Mm-hm." He nodded sleepily. "It's ok, I can still be a good leader."  
"I don't doubt that."  
"Hey Naoto, can I wear your hat?" He asked in a half daze.  
"M-my hat?" By instinct she reached to touch the brim of the hat.

She hadn't expected him to move as fast as he did, he wrapped his hands tight around her, pulling her forward until she tumbled slightly.  
"S-senpai!" She tried to pull loose as she felt his head rest on her shoulder and his grip tighten. "Yu-kun please let me go!"  
"Thank you Naoto-kun, for everything you did to help." The way he said it made her realise he wasn't just referring to her help after the Nanako incident. "Oh and Kohyru said you were confused, I really _am _glad you're a girl, and I really _do _love you." She could feel how hot her body was as he released his grip and she fell back onto her backside.  
"I…I…" She took her hat off and placed it on his head.  
"Thank you Naoto-kun, sorry about the sudden grabbing, I know you don't like it." He chuckled softly at how red she was. "I know you're still trying to sort your feelings."  
"No…I mean…you know how I feel…" She blushed deeply. "It's just…"

"Whilst I remember, that stone in the middle of the ring…it's called a Star Sapphire…I've never seen one before, but I know of them." He glanced at the floor sheepishly. "They're rare to be found naturally, that thing is worth a fortune, my father has an interest in gemstones, he has helped with several businesses that trade in them."  
"I've never really investigated the stones before." She admitted. "It seemed disrespectful to grampa, and my grandmother and mother."  
"Why?"  
"This was a handmade ring my grandfather had made for his wife, when my mother was born, they vowed they would give the engagement ring to the man that would win her heart, so that she could feel the joy and comfort that ring had bought…" she trailed off. "My grandmother died when my mother was a teenager, she never saw my father request the ring from grampa, giving it to my mother."  
"Wait, if your mother was the Shirogane, surely you should have your father's surname?"  
"No…my father did not want that, he wanted to be the next one to carry our family name and profession, he wanted my mother's name to be respected in this country too, just like it was in the Americas." She shook her head.

"After the accident, they recovered the ring from my mother's hand. My grandfather was hesitant to take the ring, and for nearly six months, I remembered he would be fiercely aggressive when it came to that ring, it never moved from the box on his desk." She hadn't realised she was talking about deep intimate feelings and memories, she could feel Yu pulling her close, feeling his warmth, and the contentment that came from himself and Kohyru's presence. "Then he decided that he wanted to do my grandmother's idea, he would keep the ring safe, but not until I married, like he had done for my mother. He would give it to me whilst I was still young."  
"He gave it to a little girl?"  
"I was five when he gave me the ring. He told me to keep it close at all times, and when I was old enough, I would fall in love myself, then that boy would have to come to him, just as my father did, and request for my hand in marriage…" She felt a sting at her eyes as she placed her hand on his chest, shuffling so her head was tucked beneath his chin. "Only then would I be allowed to wear the ring on my hand, until then, I was to wear it around my neck. It reminds me of my mother and father, and makes me think about who my grandmother was, I never had an interest in love before, but I know I was born of loving parents when I wear it." She felt as his breathing changed, he was comfortable, and deep down she knew she was as well, she felt an arm draped over her shoulder as his breathing became deeper, steadier and silence fell between them, they did not want to break the silence, an understanding passing between them as they caught just half an hour of sleep.

She stepped out to brew some more tea, and replace the candles on the table that had burnt out to nothing and bring the still sleeping Yu a cushion.  
"Hey how does this thing work?" She heard through the door as she carried the tea tray back to the living room, and the now alert Nurakami, sat on the edge of the sofa.  
"Did that sound like Rise-san to you?" He mused.  
"She must be playing with the intercom." Naoto walked to the wall. "Grampa had these intercom screens in all the major rooms of the house, including our kitchen." She pointed to the screen.

"I don't think you're meant to hold it down like that Rise…and it does say to ring the bell first." Yu struggled to his feet, watching the screen as the smaller detective sighed with embarrassment.  
"There is a huge button labelled 'bell'" She sighed. "You press that to alert us to your presence before you speak into the intercom, that button is meant so you can talk back to us when we speak to you."  
"I know." The silverette noticed that Naoto had not made a move to either remove the speaker system with the screen embedded or talk back to their friends. "It comes off the wall, right?" In response she pulled it from the hooks that suspended the silver screen from the floor.

"It isn't raining any longer, and it's only eight in the evening, perhaps we should just observe. Like it was a nature documentary." He had a mischevious smirk.  
"Hey senpai, since you're awake again, I was actually meaning to ask you something." She joined him, keeping a distance of one sofa cushion away from him, balancing the screen on the edge of the sofa arm.  
"What is it?"  
"It's about Kohyru, we know that the Kohyru you see and the one I see are the same, and I think you tried to explain to me about how it was I saw him when I was awake…"

Being a persona, he was caged up in Yu's heart in the world of reality, yet Yu had wanted to test a theory that Naoto had been pondering, could they both see the golden dragon that she claimed to see when she was awake on occasion? She had explained that the image she saw had been flickering and filled with static, almost like it had emerged from a badly tuned in television. When Yu had taken this to the velvet room, Margaret had suggested that each time Naoto had seen him; she had in her hand an electronic device, or was in the room with a large, switched off television – lucid dreaming and hallucinations accounted for the bathhouse incident, where Naoto had struggled to remain focused. Margaret had then explained that it was Naoto and his wish to allow it to pass through their minds, and it could be potentially be altered. Naoto had confirmed this and had wanted to test a second hypotheses before Nanako had become sick – she wanted to test if it was possible for both her and Yu to see the dragon together, doing the same movements and making the same noise, outside the TV – that test had been put on hiatus.

That had been tested inadvertently tested when Yu had mentioned seeing the dragon positioned behind her the night Nanako stopped breathing, leaning over her shoulder and whispering in her ear and she had seen him at the hospital, coiled tight around his master.

"Nao-chan! I know you're in there somewhere! Could you let us in?" Teddie's voice was shrill through the intercom. "Oooh buttons! Bear, bear, bear!" All he had managed was to increase the volume on either side of the line and a screech had echoed through the room where Yu and Naoto were seated. He laughed, laying across the space between them both and letting out a yawn. Naoto shuffled a little, wanting space between her and him, which she was sadly lacking again.  
"Teddie! You don't know what those buttons do!" Yosuke scolded. "Look, that's a big house; maybe Naoto-kun can't hear us. One of these buttons must ring a bell."  
"You said it was labelled, Nao-chan?" She blushed at Yu's new pet name for her. "They'll find it eventually."  
"D-don't call me that!" She was aghast. "And you didn't let me ask my question!"

"Go ahead." He was trying to keep his eyes open.  
"Can the others see him too? If we asked for it of course."  
"I have no idea, can you hear him?" Yu was curious.  
"No, he is almost always dormant when I am around you, he is yours after all." She had begun to stroke his hair without realising. "There is only one of him, and you said he's quiet when I say I can hear him."  
"Well, let me see if I can hear him." He stretched slightly, giving her better access to soothingly pet his hair as he closed his eyes.

"_What do you require of me master?"  
__I need you to come forward, Kohyru, guardian of the stars, the serpent that has guarded Naoto, and conquered her loneliness and fears, protected her emotions and proved that serpents are not tricksters._

"Open your eyes." His eyes shot open, to be met with a more solid image of the dragon. "I answered your call, what do you need of me master?" It turned to Naoto. "Misstress?" It growled softly.  
"Do not refer to me as mistress." She reached out to touch it, disappointed that her hand still floated straight through the flickering dragon.  
"We have decided to change our wish."  
"And what wish is this?" It turned back to Yu, the ruby red eyes focused entirely on his own.  
"I and Naoto-kun wish for the other persona users, our friends, to see your presence in this world, just once."  
"If that is both what you will, it shall be so. Call upon me as you need."  
"He seems to ignore me when you are around." She glanced down to the boy at her side, who was letting conscious slip from him again. "I wonder what's going on with those imbeciles outside?"

It had been half an hour, at the moment, they were arguing over disturbing Naoto, and whether she even knew where Yu was.  
"Hey look, even a cat has outsmarted us." Sure enough, one of her family's cats had slipped between the bars of the gate stopping to glance back in defiant triumph.  
"Ah stupid cat." Chie hadn't meant to kick it as hard as she did, she was aiming for the gate.  
"What was that noise?" Yu's eyes shot open, his chest rising and falling in short gasps.  
"Sorry." She had left them outside long enough, she didn't want them kicking her mother's cat or any of the other animals on the estate. She pressed the button on the intercom.

"Did you just kick my cat!?" She was pissed off, she held the intercom in her hands, holding the button as she seethed.  
"Wha-?" Yosuke panicked, turning to the intercom the others were still recovering from the shock. "Why didn't you let us in!?"  
"I was reading in my grandfather's study, I heard the screech of the cat through the door!" She lied, remembering they were not aware of Yu's presence in the house, nor the fact she had been observing them quietly for almost 45 minutes. "That does not give you permission to kick one of my family's animals!"  
"I'm sorry!" Chie cried out, her and Yosuke had begun bickering.  
"Give me a quarter of an hour." She let go of the intercom button.  
"A quarter of a-!? Where is this girl's study!?"

"I guess they are stupider than I gave them credit for." She handed Yu the intercom, reaching for a button in the back to power the intercom down. "I will go and collect the one from the door beside Grampa's study. Perhaps you would be best to sleep here."  
"Well that is no fun." He was teasing her, she knew it. "Well…I guess if you wish to test our little experiment…" He let out a long yawn.

_Fool, I am used to late nights, you are not…  
_"Get some rest, I shall be back soon enough, should this work, perhaps we could spend tomorrow discussing what we know -in full - about the most unusual events with regards to your persona."  
"That sounds like a plan, now shouldn't you be going to pretend you were in the library? I will sleep here until one of them clicks on." She nodded, turning away from him and switching out the lights, closing the door tight behind her.

Between them deciding to test if the others could see Kohyru when they were ready, they had devised a plan to test when the others eventually worked out where the 'bell' label on her gate was and when to reveal the dragon. Her grandfather had converted a large section of the house to almost be like a library, the study lined from floor to ceiling in bookshelves, broken by the large windows letting natural light in around the sofa and ancient desk that could be found on a mezzanine floor behind the rows of shelves. She sighed, taking her seat at the old desk, opening the laptop sat upon it.

Much like using the library system at school, she began to type the word "sapphire" into the search engine, specially designed to tell her the location of any book her heart desired in the room. There were several hits, the first five pages listed many of his detective novels. She sighed, searching "star sapphire" instead. There was but a single hit, and a note attached to the details of the book showed that Yakushiji had recently purchased an updated copy of an old textbook, moving the old one into the basement.  
"A book on gemstones, what a strange thing, perhaps he used it for a case, or…maybe he used it to study the gems in the ring…"

She located the book, tucked it under her arm and then paced down the stairs, the intercom in another hand.  
"Can you hear me?" She pressed the button down at the bottom of the stairs, bored of listening to yet more bickering from Chie and Yosuke and the howling laughter of Yukiko. "I'm just going to go and open the gate now."

The main gate mechanism was located besides the main door to the Shirogane estate, it was also the master control for the various portable intercoms located around the estate. From that mechanism she could power them all off until the morning, she did not desire more unexpected visitors.

"_Master has asked me to aid you…"_ The voice was a deep growl, deep inside her thoughts.  
"I see." She said to the air around her. "Then you will be most useful keeping a quiet watch." She assured. "I am certain I know what I am doing."

The gates slowly creaked forward, and the group eagerly rushed forward, running towards the bright light emitting behind the tiny figure at the huge door.  
"Whoa this place is amazing!" Everyone was pacing around the entrance hall, too busy gawping to notice the nervous glance Naoto made towards the door behind which Yu was sleeping.  
"It sure is…and Naoto-kun…sorry about the cat."  
"There is a rather large button labelled "bell" on the gate, you use it to summon the attention of either myself, my grampa, his secretary or the estate staff, the sound is much louder than the one of people simply talking." She moved to the intercom and powered off the mechanism. "Now, what are you all doing at my home?" Noticing they all had rucksacks on their back. "Were you planning on going somewhere?"  
"We were going to go to senpai's house, but his phone was off, and when we got there it was locked and the house was empty, we wondered if you knew where he might be?" Kanji did not notice her awkward shuffle under his gaze.

"Unfortunately, I do not." She felt guilty for lying. "He was here earlier, he bought me food, as a thank you for helping him."  
"Oooh is that what I smell?" Chie and that damned nose, she'd probably smelt the steak from the street.  
"Perhaps you would care for some food, myself and Yu could never have finished all the food he bought."

From behind the door which they had mostly ignored, a growl was against the half asleep boy's ear.  
"She is leading them away."  
"That is good." Yu twisted on his side. "Ah, I see what she means about the flickering." Sure enough, the dragon's image was flickering far more than normal.  
"She is most interested in me, in learning about me."  
"As am I, you are most unusual, your presence in her thoughts, your independent thought process of us both…you are not like my other personae." His muscles were still aching.  
"I have a purpose. A purpose I intend to serve, just like my purpose as your persona." With a bow of the head, the dragon left its master to his half sleep.

-x-x-

_This is so awkward…  
_"I just told you all you asked, he bought me food, we ate, we talked about Nanako." She noticed how they ate the now cold meal, the gluttony in their eyes. "Why are you all carrying bags?"  
"Well…" Yosuke awkwardly glanced around the group. "We were…"  
"We were hoping sensei was here, so we could all have a sleepover at the Amagi Inn again! We were going to invite you and sensei together, since we thought he would be visiting you! Since your grampa is still away and it's nearly Christmas!" Teddie chimed in, only quieting when he noticed the others glaring at him.  
"I-is that so?" Naoto shook her head. "Well, the estate is empty tonight, I guess you could stay here."

-x-x-

A change of plans she was sure, but it seemed to work better in the long run, she had left the group in two separate bedrooms that had no assigned owner, then made her way into her own room to change into her pyjamas – urging the others to do the same, she made sure to make noise and draw attention as she passed by the doors to the rooms, mumbling about senpai and his phone and his possible whereabouts, she did not have to turn round at the stairs to see the rest of the group waiting for her to descend the stairs, at the bottom, they observed from the corner as she entered the room.  
"Senpai?" She was sure to be loud.  
"Naoto-kun?" He was groggy.

They paced to the door, carefully glancing in.


	8. Night at the Shirogane's Part 2

There was a charge of electricity, lightening streaking from its flickering jaw as it shot forward from behind the sofa where Yu had been sleeping.

Rise's scream pierced the silence, followed by the scream of the others, Yu had rolled up onto his stomach, shocked but too tired to get up from his laying position, Naoto scared by the sound had stumbled back and into the table, recovering on her knees.  
"W-what the hell was that!?" She had barely managed to contain the feminine tone to her voice after the screaming. Everyone was still nervously watching the head of the dragon, the electric charge now gone.  
"Isn't that-?" Yosuke's eyes shot to Yu.  
"Isn't what, what?" Yu yawned. "Why are you screaming?"  
"W-what are you!?" Chie was inhaling deeply.  
"K-Kohyru!" Kanji let the voice hang in the air.

"What are you on about?" Naoto demanded, her expression as stoic as normal. "I don't know what you mean, but the only thing in this room besides me is Yu-kun." _And my parasitic…guardian of sorts.  
_"You don't see the huge gold-?" Yukiko blinked as the image faded.  
"Whatever it was you just saw, I assure you it is merely the result of a lack of sleep in all of you for the last week." She struggled back to her feet, the tiredness making them ache and try to hold her to the floor.  
"I did tell you Naoto-kun, not to let them know I was here." Yu glanced in her direction. "I was hoping for a restful sleep, a peaceful one as such."  
"What? Senpai-!" She then realised what he was trying to do. "O-of course, I am sorry senpai, I am not a good liar." She blushed.

Yu had somehow managed to lie his way through why he was asleep in her living room, and why she had lied to them about his presence in the house. She was impressed, listening half heartedly as she flipped through sections of her grandfather's textbook, noting what each of the gems in her mother's engagement ring supposedly represented. She wished she was half as convincing a liar as him.

By eleven in the evening, all of the investigation squad, aside from Yu and Naoto, had retired to the rooms she had offered them.  
"You are exhausted." He was lounging on the sofa, tired and curious eyes watching as she glanced up from her book.  
"As are you senpai." She closed the book, laying it on the work table, a long sigh leaving her lips. "Why did you lie to them? They are your friends." She hated asking a childish question like that, but she had genuinely been curious, she had always believed part of having friends was to be honest and truthful to them.  
"Earlier in the day, I happened to notice you had a music room." Yu was deliberately ignoring her, she could tell, a false sense of seriousness in his voice that mocked her was her sign.  
"Well of course, you know I can play the piano, you have seen it with your own eyes, my grandfather and Yakushiji are also skilled musicians, both my parents were too."

"Well, _excuse me_. Not all of us are lucky enough to have a music room with a grand piano and quite a few stringed and wind instruments." He mocked. "Perhaps after a few hours sleep, you would care to join me in playing that piece of music at the piano."  
"Can you play the violin?" She asked curiously, knowing that the piece at the piano was a Schubert piece, most likely played by Yakushiji. "I believe it is a Schubert sonata for violin and piano, one I am rather fond of hearing." The upbeat happy tone and dark lows often made her feel at ease, she had a copy of the same piece in her small music collection in her bedroom.  
"Of course I can."

"Is there anything you can't do?" She huffed, blushing slightly as she followed it with a yawn.  
"I can not tell you what Kohyru is doing, or at least not why." He smirked. "Now, you are tired, perhaps you should sleep, and since I know the others will not wake until the afternoon, I will answer your earlier question. Agreed?" He noticed the subtle bob of her head in agreement. "Now if you would be so kind, would you be willing to stroke my hair again?" He had the look of a bruised puppy, and as much as she wanted to slap him, she did not deny his request.

She had slept for a few hours before a desperate thirst woke her with a start. She had drifted to sleep in the same position as she remembered stroking Yu's hair in, he was laying against her thigh and she had tucked her feet up onto the sofa. Her knees clicked as she gently untangled herself from underneath him, using her hand to gently lower his head to the sofa cushions so she could stand. Her joints cracked one after the other as she stretched to release the tension.

When she returned from the kitchen with a glass of water, she held back the urge to punch the sarcastic leader in the stomach, he had woken, stretched out to occupy the entire sofa and splayed one arm out, as if inviting her to sleep next to him and he had promptly fallen straight back to sleep.  
"Does it worry you?" There was still an electric charge coming from its jaw as the dragon's face hovered above the sofa. "All the uncertainty?"  
"About you? Or…" She glanced back down to Yu.  
"Well yes about me, but that would concern anyone. It concerns him, _scares_ him in fact. He knows I mean you no ill will however. I mean matters of the heart…of becoming attached…"  
"I…I don't fear attachment."  
"No, you fear loneliness, your shadow declared that to the world, did it not? There are other things you fear too, but I do not see them."  
"What? I thought you could see all my thoughts and feelings-?"  
"Sleep." It demanded. "You are of no condition to be interrogating me, I will watch over you, and ensure you are at rest." It leant close to the ear of its master, hot steam brushing Yu's ear.  
"…Leave her…Koh…yru." He mumbled, still sleeping, twisting away from the steam.  
"He knows I am here, he knows I will keep watch over you, I am a guardian, after all." Nervously, she took her place on the sofa, laying in such a way to give her a few inches of personal space, using his arm as a pillow and curving her body to match his position. "Now sleep well young one." She felt as he lent against his master's ear once more, she could feel the heat of the creature's breath, almost as if they were in the TV world again. She felt its mouth move and heard no sound before the flickering gold disappeared from the corner of her eyes.

She felt an arm reach out, the hand only resting so the fingers grazed against her side. _Parasitic reptile, you told him to do it._ She rolled back slightly, allowing the arm to drape against her stomach, whilst keeping an inch between them still.

-x-x-

To her surprise, he was as skilled at violin as Yakushiji was, he moved with grace as he read from his sheet music, relying on his fingers to glide to the right place as he led a conversation with her.

"Do you really not understand why I lied to them?"  
"No senpai, I do not. You know of my social ineptitude however, and I was always raised to be truthful with what few friends I did manage to make as a child." She continued to play the tune without the need to look at the music, her brain able to compartmentalise her conversation with him and the tune she was playing – hearing them both clearly without one interfering with the other.  
"Perhaps if you went out and played with other children instead of read books all the time, you would have had proper friends." He teased, before realising he may have struck a nerve. "Alas, I lied because it would be less of a headache and confusion for them all if I gave them the lie. It would also cause them to lead to less conclusions."  
"How do you mean?"  
"What normally happens when the hero brings the female investigator, or victim's wife or governmental official, food at her apartment in your books Naoto?" She felt her heart skip a beat, her fingers still finding their way to their appropriate places on the piano autonomously.  
"Senpai!" She screeched.

How many times had she read: "Oh, I thought you'd like some company, we have a long night of work ahead, I ordered us food." From the male protagonist as he and his female sidekick were preparing to spend a long evening in the empty police department pouring over notes to find their killer, or who his next victim might be? How often had it been that the conversation had soon drifted to how their work affected their personal lives, how often the protagonist was alone, divorced more often than not and often his sidekick was young and unable to act on the urges all young women are supposed to have? The answers to those questions were always, in every book she had read, bar a few – written by real killers rather than a person writing about a fictional detective. In all those stories, one of two scenarios would happen, they would end up being passionate, but breaking it off before it got too heavy, or – more likely – they would wind up making love – if that was even the correct term. More often than not, she got the impression that the character's sex would be some kind of cathartic release of their frustrations and grievances rather than loving – not that she would know – she had never experienced anything of the like.

_Most of what happens in detective novels never came true. _Her grandfather always made sure to avoid assigning her to cases where the worst crimes occurred – he had always prevented her going to anything that may have caused her offense or scarred her even more than her childhood had – so anything involving rape, brutal murders or the like would be a definite no to her. Even if she had never been to a scene like that – she knew _death _was still real, all those horrid things were still real. It was locations and people that were not – murders in pretty places, or places like mountain lodges, beach hotels or underground clubs were in reality a rarity. Most people were killed in the streets, or in their homes. Most sidekicks were an annoyance, most murders a disgusting shock to the system, they were not things to be loved, or fall in love over.

"You ok there?" She shook her head to notice that no music was playing, she was not sure when she had stopped, but it struck her that it had been long enough for her senpai to place the cello back on its stand, carefully placing the bow on the hook beside it and taking her hands from the piano to rest in her lap, twist her to face him and kneel before her.  
"Sorry, I was…thinking."  
"Deeply too by the looks of it. But do you understand now?" He smiled, a smile that seemed to show genuine happiness she was fine.  
"Yes senpai, thank you."

"Now, what do you usually do for breakfast?"  
"Normally, Yakushiji would have prepared it for me before I woke." She pointed out. "I am not useful in the kitchen, I have to be supervised when in there, even now there is a high probability the kitchen will burn even if I was just to prepare cereal to eat." She blushed.  
"Well, then it's lucky you have a domestic beast like me residing here, lead me to the kitchen if you would be so kind."  
"You plan on making breakfast?" She asked curiously.  
"Of course."

True to his word, he made her and himself a small breakfast, hoping to enjoy the silence between them before they discussed all that they had learned of the dragon.  
"He acts like a creature in a book I once read." She began as she lowered one of her notebooks onto her grandfather's desk. "Well…a parasite of sorts. I tried to bring it up with the dragon a while ago…"

-x-x-

"It has been a while, has it not mistress?" Her mind was still reeling from her senpai telling her he was glad she was a girl, she did not require a visit from his meddling counterpart tonight of all nights.  
"I don't want you here." She noticed that whilst they were sat in the white void of her dreams like always, her shadow self had made itself scarce. She could also sense a ringing in the void, it assaulted her ears and made it difficult to focus.  
"That, my dear, is a lie. That noise, it is your thoughts, your feelings about today's events." The dragon screeched as the ring caused pain. "My master feels uneasy tonight, as he can feel this anguish through me, faintly of course."  
"What!?" She yelled over the noise.  
"Relax!" The dragon snapped, the white teeth snapping shut just inches from her face. "You have to relax. _Stop thinking so hard!_"

It had taken a while before the ringing ceased, she felt out of breath.  
"Your anxieties, they do that to you, don't they?" The dragon was soft spoken, just like its master, it reminded her of him in so many ways.

Bigger and stronger than her, beyond her control, and kept its secrets tightly guarded. Ruby eyes of the dragon hid as much as Yu's silver eyes. It carried itself with dignity and grace far beyond what the large, heavy frame should have, and could flex itself and bend itself into fantastic shapes with little effort. In the TV world, she had seen first hand that this was true of Yu himself, he didn't look substantial, but to wield a katana with such power took a lot of strength, add in how many times he has sparred with his own personae at the entrance of the TV world, she knew of his strength, yet he moved at speed and with grace like his many personae, something she had learned to do alongside her own, recently transformed and strengthened persona, allowing herself to feel more in tune with her other self. Mentally he and the dragon were the same, so calm and relaxed, yet hiding sadness, happiness, all other emotions underneath, only allowing them to manifest when he could use them to change a situation, she envied the control he and the dragon had over that. She just had childish outbursts. She had her anxieties, her panic attacks in private – the mask she wore was just that.

"…Yes they do that." She was embarrassed, something the dragon picked up on.  
"My lady, why do you feel shame about that? Why are you scared of being close to others, why do you hide yourself from others?"  
"That's what social anxiety is, it's spending every day overthinking a situation, dying a little bit inside as you feel the whole world is judging you…that is my experience of it at least. I can't _not _think, my brain is constantly turning over the anxieties of being who I am, doing what I do…being _female_ whilst doing them as well…"  
"Let them go." He growled.  
"It's not that easy!" She screamed out.  
"I know. I do not mean just forget them all the time, ignore them and forget they exist." It flexed itself into a more comfortable shape. "I know that that is an impossible request. I am saying that you need to let go of those insecurities when you feel _safe_."  
"What do you mean?"  
"You know we are in your head, in your dream, you are in control here." It growled. "And yet you always keep distance from me, your physical body is still tense, and for every feeling of security I and my master give you, you keep building more and more walls around yourself to not let us get close."

"I know you are safe with him, I know that you know you're safe. You know you can let your guard down around him. He likes when you blush because you get easily excitable over mysteries, he has seen you get angry, he has seen you look sad, he has seen happiness in those eyes." The dragon sighed, black smoke coming from its throat. "For brief moments you allow my master and me through the barriers you have built, but they soon return."  
"I…" She hung her head low at the dragon's words, he was right, she was certain.  
"Do not feel sad, it is something that will change with practice." It assured her, it then fell silent, waiting for her to speak up, she interpreted it as a cue that the conversation had ended.

"You make me think of a character from an English novel my grandfather has in his study." She sat down, feeling a strange hollow nothingness, as if she was floating.  
"Is that so, how is that?"  
"This character was not a human, all the other characters were. He was a non-human entity that was searching for a story, moving between people as they came into contact."  
"He was a parasite?" The dragon seemed offended at the concept.  
"Of sorts. He was more human than any parasite, or many humans I have met in my life." She was quiet. "As he passed between his hosts, he learnt more of himself, and more about the world around him. You seem to pass freely between myself and your master, just like him."  
"Are you suggesting I do it merely to learn more about you, as if I was a _spy_?" It growled.

"I do not think that of you, I'm sure I did once, but not now. I am saying you move freely between us, carrying our thoughts and feelings between us as you go." The dragon nodded in agreement. "We seem to give you free will of ourselves."  
"Not true. Naoto-kun, I do not see your memories. You must grant me entry to them, after all, I am an honourable beast." The dragon bowed. "I can not see my master's memories either, I fear that may be a discussion that should be elaborated further."  
"You have briefly mentioned it before." She took her hat off to run a hand through her hair – a sign she was stressed and thinking much too hard. "You also bring neither of us harm, but I know that it is for different reasons than the creature in my novel."  
"Well what reason did he give?"  
"He said humans are poisoned enough, they would harm themselves given enough of a chance. He had no need to harm his host."  
"I can understand that, after all, your shadow was born of a poison of sorts. She was a representation of your repressed self."  
"Yet your master does not have one."  
"He has more freedom than you or I, but he has created a cage all of his own." The dragon mused. "I fear our time here is done, you are stressed, and I hear that ringing once again."  
"I understand."

-x-x-

"You called him a parasite?" Yu was shocked.  
"I believe he is symbiotic, after all, you and I both get a benefit of having him in our presence." She waited as he slowly nodded in agreement. "I'm not sure _what_ but he must get some kind of benefit from us too."  
"Or he is just altruistic." Yu suggested.  
"There is no such thing as a truly unselfish act, senpai." She shook her head. "We are not machines. We get pleasure from helping others."  
"Then maybe it is mutualism, we gain as does he."  
"But what is it that he's gaining?"


	9. Naoto's Horse

"Hey, Mr. Dragon, what do you think is in there?" The scientist shadow was in her childish state today, Naoto was still too light in her sleep to enter the void where her shadow and the dragon waited, observing the strange black bubble floating before them. Every time the shadow tapped the bubble, the thin film would sink in slightly, before bouncing straight back out. Even when the shadow had tried a running jump at the bubble, it had bounced back to shape, the dragon's teeth and electricity had also not permitted them entry.

"I believe it is something Naoto-kun does not wish us to see." It mused.  
"Like what?" The shadow nibbled at its sleeve and played with its hat.  
"Perhaps they are feelings, deep feelings, feelings she does not wish to share. Or memories perhaps. Maybe both." The dragon was confined to her rules whilst it explored her mind, if there was an area she didn't want him to explore; she could easily erect a wall to block him.

This bubble was different. Not even her own shadow could enter it. That little girl had access to everywhere, all her thoughts and feelings and memories, although the shadow had mentioned many memories were missing, or the feelings did not seem right, or the fragments too damaged to understand.

"Maybe…that's where I was born?" The shadow glanced up at the dragon for approval.  
"You mean the contents of this bubble are what caused her to repress you?" It pondered for a moment. "Perhaps this is true."  
"Does senpai have one of these?" She nudged it again.  
"No, my master has something much more complex."

"What are you looking at?"  
"Ah, it seems you have finally fallen into a deep sleep." The dragon remarked not turning to her. "Go and fetch her small one." It swatted the shadow with its tail to go and fetch Naoto's true self.  
"I can walk myself." She growled, kicking the dragon's tail aside so she could squeeze between her shadow self and the gold monster. "Oh…this is…"  
"I don't think we should have poked it…" The shadow mumbled quietly.  
"You mean _you_ shouldn't have." The dragon paused for a moment. "Do not worry Naoto-kun, we can't permeate it, we tried."  
"Stay away from it…it's where –" she broke off before she told them what was in there.

That was where her childhood memories could be found, the ones of her parent's crash, of her realisation she was alone. Of the few, or at least the only friends she could remember. Even the memories of her mother's lullabies to her, her father holding her hand as she climbed after him up the stairs to be put to bed. Yakushiji walking her across the floodplains every day whilst her grandfather was working. All the happiness, and the many, many evil feelings she felt in childhood were in there.  
"I can not enter without permission." The dragon remarked.  
"Please, do not tell senpai what you see here."  
"Of course."

-x-x-

"I wonder what he means by he can't enter my memories, or why he said yours were different." It had been a couple of hours, she had been recalling many of the conversations she had with the dragon, occasionally listening to what the dragon had told Yu in response to what she had told him.  
"He has mentioned the difficulty seeing my memories before." Yu remembered. "The other's personas, they all freely see the memories of their masters, able to walk amongst them and access them at will, that's what they say anyways."  
"Kohyru told me once your mind is like a maze of doors behind a bank vault. Only a few of those doors are open to him, after he breaks the bank vault." She waited for a moment, trying to recall what the dragon had told her after. "He says the doors change based on who's there, so another persona will be able to enter different doors, all the others will be locked."  
"How strange…but…" Yu shook his head. "I don't recall many memories from my time before arriving in Inaba, and it's like something has to jog my memory, like I remember my dad telling me about gemstones when I saw your mother's ring."

"_That door opened to me when you saw it_" Kohyru's voice echoed across the empty plain of his mind. _"I only got a glimpse of the memory inside before the door locked shut again."_

"Are you ok senpai?" She asked, pouring another cup of tea from the pot she had asked a maid to fetch her, she handed him the cup.  
"Kohyru has confirmed what I just said, he said the door shut just after he got a glimpse of the memory." He rubbed his forehead then took a sip from the cup, holding his cup against his lip for a moment, appreciating the warmth spreading through his body.  
"Senpai, this is most tiring, perhaps we should stop." She rubbed her eyes, glancing down at her notebook. "Would you care for a summary of what we know?" She glanced at her watch on the table, they had been talking for three hours.

"Kohyru, according to your friend Margaret, is following his own purpose, acting as a guardian and a comfort to me, alongside being your persona. He did this by allowing me to interrupt communications between yourself and him as you fought…well, the other me. He travels freely between us, and when we are together, he can not be called forth by myself in your presence, as I do not exact the control over him that you do. As mine and your relationship has…matured, my ability to summon him and communicate with him has improved, to the point where we can both see that strange flickering image and communicate with him at the same time." Already more questions were flooding her mind, and she could see Yu focusing on other thoughts too. "He has assisted me with my feelings, told me about you and told you things about me. He listens to and cares for shadow Naoto's feelings, as well as my own."  
"He even called on you to help me when I thought Nanako was…" Yu bit his lip to stop the next word passing his lips.  
"Indeed, he felt in pain. He knew you were in pain too. Yet I thought your personae were different, you've told me before if I were to shoot Kohyru in the head you would not feel any pain, yet if you were to hit Yamato-Takeru with the hilt of your sword, I would feel pain where you struck it, albeit a reduced blow." She tapped her pen against her notebook.  
"That's true, but I was trying to shut out the voice, Kohyru's voice, my personae's voices were frustrating me."

"Oh, Nao-chan here you are!" Teddie's shrill voice rang through the living room, she slammed the notebook shut, thrusting it onto Yu's chest. "Did I interrupt an intimate moment?" He asked, bright blue orbs nervously passing between a flustered blue haired detective and her slightly winded companion who had a smirk on his face.  
"Nothing of the sort!" She was recovering quickly, allowing her normal façade to take over.  
"I'm sorry Nao-chan, I didn't know which room you were in, and as I was wondering around opening all the doors, this nice lady came out and told me you were here! She said I shouldn't go into the room it belonged to…um…Yaku…something"  
"Yakushiji's room? How on earth did you end up on the third floor, I never took you up there, my room was just further down from yours." She huffed. "He would not have been happy to see you in there."  
"That's ok, the nice lady yelled at me before I opened the door, then shooed me downstairs and pointed me here."  
"That is good." Naoto knew of Yakushiji's belongings, and did not wish to scare Teddie…the man was nowhere near as innocent as he claimed to be, some of his belongings scared even her grandfather.

"What are you doing sensei, Nao-chan?" He asked, sitting on the floor, cross legged, a bright smile on his face.  
"We were just talking Teddie." Yu replied calmly.  
"Oh, ok, and that magic trick was cool last night sensei!"  
"A magic trick? I think you are mistaken Teddie, I did no magic, I'm sure you were just tired."  
"But then why did we all see it?"  
"I have no idea." Yu shook his head.  
"It sure did look like Kohyru sensei." He glanced between his two friends again. "I'm sure we were just sleepy. Can we go and see Nana-chan today sensei?"  
"The visiting hours aren't until this afternoon, it is not even noon yet." The silver haired boy pointed out.

"Ok! Hey what are you drinking Nao-chan?" He asked, pointing at the china cup in her hand.  
"Tea." She replied calmly, shocked at his surprised look. "You _have _tried tea, right?"  
"Nope. All the Hanamura family drink is coffee, and soda!" He reached out for the cup that Yu offered him.  
"Be careful with the cup, I don't think Naoto-kun's grandfather would be happy if we broke it." He smiled.  
"This is delicious Nao-chan, can I have more?"  
"Of course." She smiled, knowing the bear had lost interest in what he saw.

"Hey Nao-chan, will you show us around this afternoon?" Teddie asked, pulling at a loose thread on his pyjamas. "After the others wake up, and before we go see Nana-chan?"  
"I can take you to a place where you can see the whole estate, this place is much too large to cover in a short time." Naoto offered. "You can see all of the estate from our roof, I like to climb up there to see the fireworks when they're on, when Yakushiji-san doesn't get mad at me for not eating dinner before I climb up, anyways."

The maid who had walked in on Yu asleep on her sofa at the apartment whilst she was sick was happy to bring the few guests who had woken some food.  
"No Yosuke?" Yu asked, looking between the occupants of the table.  
"Chie-senpai and Yukiko-senpai aren't here either." Rise commented as she took a sip from her water bottle. "Oh and sorry for barging into your house last night."  
"It is quite alright, you are the first guests I have ever bought to the estate, perhaps we should have a more traditional sleepover at some point?" She heard a rasping at the door to the dining hall and went to answer.  
"Hey senpai, why aren't you eating?" Kanji asked, scoffing his seventh pancake.  
"I already ate." He noticed a change in Naoto's posture as she spoke in low tones with the person who had disturbed them.

"As far as I was aware, my grandfather paid you to do that job too. You knew he would be away." She scowled.  
"Is something wrong Naoto?" Yu called across.  
"Ah senpai, we have a few horses on the estate, it seems Yakushiji-san has been assisting the stable hands in caring for and moving the horses. He is not here, and they are struggling with a particular horse we have."  
"He _is _your horse." The stablehand's voice could be heard from behind the door. "You may not ride him but still."  
"That's because I never took to horse riding, and he is much too large for me to ride. Hence why I have a second, smaller horse."  
"I'll help." Yu offered. "I've ridden horses before and stuff, I spent a few weeks out in a horse ranch once when my parents were away."

-x-x-

They had gone to collect the missing members of the investigation team before they had set off to assist one of the estate servants with the horse duties. Teddie had offered to go and wake Yosuke, bubbling with excitement about seeing what a 'horse' really looked and felt like. Rise had offered to go and wake the two girls, Naoto had returned to her own room to change into more acceptable clothes. Yu waited on the stairs besides Kanji, who could hear everything going on down the hall.

"All I'm saying is this place is the best house _you _will ever set foot in!" Chie and Yosuke had been arguing again, and Yukiko could be heard chortling away.  
"How rude! How do you know that?"  
"You are so cheap you can't afford to buy proper steak! And you work for Junes! How can you ever hope to afford to live in a place like this!?"

The stablehand, a man in his early twenties joined the two young men on the stairs.

"You are friends with the master's granddaughter?"  
"Indeed, I'm Yu Nurakami, this is Kanji Tatsumi." Yu offered up their names.

"I know of you two, often, she wonders around the estate pondering things, as much as she doesn't enjoy riding a horse, she often spends time in the tree overlooking the field where they spend the sunny days. Passing underneath them often means you get to hear her musing to herself."  
"I see."  
"Her grandfather would be most happy to know she has been entertaining guests in the estate whilst he has been working. Poor man, he tried everything to get her to be friendly with other kids."

"How would you know? Y' seem a little young."  
"My father worked here before I did. He is off at the moment, visiting some relatives in Kyoto. He knew Naoto-kun's parents, and he taught her to ride a horse. He said she never seemed to enjoy it, she was always unsteady on her feet. Nervous about the animal." He rose as he heard steps coming down the hallway. "Master Shirogane, shall we be off?" He bowed.  
"Yo man, that ain't Naoto." Kanji pointed out, it was the rest of the group.  
"Even if it was me, I don't like the pleasantries, neither does grampa." She yelled out, rounding the corner in her usual outfit, swapping her usual shoes with wellington boots. "Shall we be off?"

Chalk it up as another thing that the group did not think they would be doing in recent times, they had been forced to climb into the back of the stablehand's horse trailer, tossing around amongst the hay as he drove for five minutes to reach the stables.

"Geez Naoto-kun, how big is the estate?"  
"Look at the size of the house, this land has to be about eight times the size!" Yosuke cried out as he climbed out the back followed by two large dogs.  
"The lands here are vast, and the family own a lot of animals. The horses, cats and dogs make up just a small amount." The stablehand explained as they followed him to a brick building which was made of half built walls and a single gate. "This place even has its own private lake, fed from the river in Inaba, and the most amazing pond of beautiful koi and sturgeon in the gardens."  
"Senpai, what's a sturgeon?" Kanji whispered to Yu.  
"A black fish with a long nose, related to sharks." He responded.  
"This is the home of the estate's twelve horses. Many of which were acquired by Master Shirogane from people who could not care for the animals in surrounding towns, several belong to the occupants of the house and there are four that are used for pulling the carriage stored in the garage."  
"You _have _a horse drawn carriage?" Rise squealed excitedly. "Promise us you'll let us ride in it one day!"

The stable was open inside, eleven of the twelve horses, ranging in size from a small pony to a fully grown shire horse, the four powerful white horses used to pull the carriage, two large black stallions and a smaller brown stallion came bolting out and straight into the fields.  
"Our problem horse is the one still in there." Naoto glanced in. "He was a gift from an English friend of my grampas, the horse's name is Willow. It was a horse used in some competition back in the UK. Jousting tournaments." Yu and the others peered in to see the dapple grey horse staring back from the corner of the hay filled barn.  
"Jousting? Isn't that the Medieval thing where knights would charge at each other on horseback until one was knocked off?" Yukiko asked.  
"Yes, they regularly host competitions with wooden lances in the UK, I attended one with my grandfather when we went to visit his friend a few years back. The thing is, Willow has grown used to wearing a full coat of armour, which you can see bolted onto the wall over there." Naoto pointed to the metal frame, designed to fit the horse perfectly. "He only goes outside to eat for an hour or so, before returning to the stable again, and often won't leave without being forced, or wearing the armour. As you can imagine, wearing a metal suit is impractical. It often takes several grown men to drag him out of the stable so they can clean it." The stablehand brushed past them and went to fit the reigns over the horse's head.

"Willow is technically my horse, but I am far too small to ride him. Being in the corner there you can't really appreciate how tall he is until you see my six foot tall stablehand stood next to him." Sure enough, the horse's head was above the man's shoulders when he stood straight. "I can talk to him if you want, calm him down so you can help us pull him out." She turned to the others. "Do not approach the horse until he is out here, too many people could scare him. Yu-kun, I trust since you spent some time around horses, you know how to approach one with respect?"  
"They're so _cool _sensei, and they look so soft." Teddie cooed.  
"C'mon ya dumb bear, we can pet the horse when they get it out the stable."  
"Kanji help the stablehand with the gate when we get the horse out." The boy nodded in response.

"_Master, it seems to enjoy the sound of Nao-kun's voice" _The dragon's hearing was far more sensitive than his own, and that meant the dragon could hear things clearer than him. _"Make sure that Nao-kun keeps talking to the horse as you pull."_

They had stopped a foot away from the horse, waiting for it to close the distance between them, Naoto was trying to soothe the horse gently. Patiently, the creature began to take steps towards her.  
"Keep talking to him Naoto, he likes your voice." Yu whispered, noticing the horse stop for a brief second, around 10 inches from Naoto's outstretched hand.  
"It's me Willow, it's Nao-chan. I'm sorry I can't play with you very often anymore. You are a little big for a small girl like me to ride. You're still a beautiful pony though." She was blurting out anything that would come to mind, and the horse stepped closer, head lowered to allow her to pet its nose and reach for the reigns. "Senpai, say hello." The horse backed off at the smell of Yu, taking a step back and pulling the reigns tight. "In your pocket, there's some apple, offer it to him." Sure enough, the stablehand had thrust a piece of apple into the silver haired boy's pocket.

The horse had eaten it without much thought and before long was allowing Yu to pet it, even behind the ears, which Naoto knew it was not fond of.  
"There really is nothing you can't do. The horse likes you." She smiled. "Grab the reigns, and we should be able to get him out if I keep talking to him."

Once outside, feeling the cooling grass against its hooves it seemed to stop resisting, its movements became more free flowing and natural of a horse as Naoto held the reigns close, beside her, the horse was a monster in terms of size.

"He's normally very calm once he's outside, I guess the strangers at the tournaments must have scared him a little, so he gets nervous about coming outside."  
"Oh Nao-chan, he's so soft." Teddie cooed as he and Rise stroked either side of its body, Kanji cautiously petting the horse's face. Chie had decided to take a back seat.  
"I am…not too keen on horses."  
"They can be a useful tool. Police officers often ride them in big cities, because there isn't much that won't get out of the way for a horse barrelling towards you. Out here in the country, they're just a nice commodity, a good mode of transport too. Not that I ride them much." Chie was still debating being a police officer, and she did agree with Naoto's point that not much would stand in the way of a horse charging towards you.

" _Master, do you not think that Naoto and that horse have things in common?"_ Yu smiled. _"They both have their anxieties, but with enough resilience, they both begin to lose that anxiety in the open, you just have to keep pulling and pulling. Chie's scared of both of them too…" _ He couldn't help but smirk at that.


	10. Christmas

"I was wondering when you'd show up." She stretched herself out against the cold slate tiles of the roof, feeling the familiar warm sensation of hot steam against her ear, signifying that Kohyru had taken its physical form to see her.  
"Nanako-chan, she looked so safe." The dragon was relaxed its body coiled around her before disappearing over the curved edge of the roof.  
"Nanako-chan will be fine." She promised. "I was wondering if you could help me with something."  
"Anything mistress."  
"What is this purpose?" She asked, sitting up, carefully shifting her weight so she would not slip.  
"As to why I am within your dreams? I do not know."  
"For a mythical monster, you seem to not know a lot." She smirked.

"I know enough"  
"Then tell me about myself." Naoto taunted.  
"You are socially anxious, you love my master, even if it took you hours to come to that conclusion, you feel confusion when it comes to the feelings you have for him, those feelings scare you, but you embrace them none the less. You adore Nanako-chan, she idolises you, you and her share a common pain. She thinks of you as a big sister, you embrace that nickname, hoping one day she will hold you with as much esteem as she does my master." The dragon took a moment to breathe. "You are comfortable. Happy."

"I never got a chance to thank you; about listening to me after he told me he loved me."  
"Christmas will soon be upon us mistress, you and he and the others saved the world." The dragon fell silent. "…my master and you will be alone this Christmas Eve."  
"Indeed we will, my grandfather is not due for return until New Year." Snow was falling again, and she could feel the sudden plummet in temperature.  
"December 20th, only a few more days." The dragon stared up to the sky. "I myself plan on taking a learning experience."  
"Learning experience?" Naoto was edging towards the skylight slowly, careful not to lose her footing and the warmth of the estate enveloped her as soon as she climbed through.  
"Do not concern yourself, my master has asked me to speak with the velvet room occupants over Christmas, after all, they do not celebrate it."

"Before you leave, can I ask a favour?" Naoto shook the snow from her cap.  
"What is it Naoto-kun?"  
"I want senpai to take me to the TV world, I want to see you, talk to you, not having to worry about fighting."  
"Perhaps when I am back from my learning." It bowed to her. "You should worry more about Christmas."  
"Christmas, what about it?"  
"He's right, you can be oblivious sometimes." The laugh reminded her of her grandfather, old and wise, smoke rising in circles from the dragon's jaw.  
"O-oh." She blushed.

-x-x-

_You had something to do with this Kohyru…_ He glanced at his phone, he had a few hours before Naoto was due to visit him, he was still shocked at her sudden self invitation to his home, but he felt a warming sensation. Nanako was safe at the hospital, they had saved the world, he could be _normal_ at long last. He had managed to duck out of school after his morning lessons, slinking off into the cold winter, he had spent the afternoon nursing a mug off coffee and making cake.  
"_Master, I do believe this is your desire as well."  
_"I know that, but…" He poured the cake mix into the tin and sighed heavily. "You are ok with going to the velvet room tonight?" He heard a low snicker before he felt the presence of Kohyru fade slightly. "Stupid dragon." He set the timer on his oven, skimmed over the instructions for the icing and threw himself down onto the sofa.

"I take it you've gone to bother her again." He laughed to himself, feeling the presence of the dragon fade, he was the only persona he had at his side at the moment. "Always a showy bastard, don't interfere with my love matters."  
_Then again, he most likely already has, after all, I tend to lose track of him in the evenings. He often goes to visit Naoto, maybe she discusses these things with him…  
_All he could do until the cake had finished baking was continue to read the detective novel he had seen Naoto reading previously.

"_What are you doing here this late?"  
"Please, let me in!" She brushed aside him, her tears flowing freely.  
_"_I'm sorry…I didn't mean to get you involved." It was all he could think to say.  
_"_You cost me my job! Y-you-!" Before he knew what he was doing, his arms were wrapped tight around her, pressing her head to his chest. She was right, if he hadn't have mentioned her name during the argument with the chief, she wouldn't be here right now.  
_"_Look, it's snowing, it's cold. You need to get warm. Here." He offered her a scotch after he stopped her crying, reminding himself she was only barely over the legal age, she drank it down and eagerly held her hand out for more._

_For someone so used to drinking in shady bars, it had only taken a few drinks before she began to behave tipsily. He sighed.  
_"_Look, stay here tonight."  
"D-don't tell me what to do!" She stumbled over her words._

The timer bought him back into reality, the novel was divulging into the second "romance" scene in several hundred pages. He sighed, noticing that there was never a place for love in these novels, aside for the killers. "I killed for love!" was more common than any relationship between the detectives. Even the husband and wife duos in the books did not express much love for each other.  
"I hope this isn't the kind of future poor Naoto gets…I won't do that…" He felt his cheeks warm slightly at that thought.

Icing the cake had taken more effort than he believed it could, it had taken several packets of pre-rolled pink icing, a change of clothes, half a box of strawberries, and a shower before he was impressed with his work.  
"Ta-da!" He smirked to himself. "I just hope she likes the present I got her too." He reached into the box by his ankle, pulling out the large, stitched dragon toy, which he had ordered online to be custom made to look like Kohyru. Hanging from the horns was a smaller Yamato-Takeru and Naoto's detective hat, carefully stitched on loosely to give the impression both were hanging on.  
_"Is that…me?" _He felt his hearing become more sensitive, the smell of strawberries become clearer in his nose, Kohyru had returned, and had heightened his senses, as he always did. _"It is most impressive, oh master, she is most excited about today."_

-x-x-

"_Nao-kun, can you hear me?" _She was eating her food alone in the cafeteria, the others had all gone to track down Yu, who had seemingly vanished after his P.E. class this morning. _"Their searching is futile, my master has returned home."  
_"Is that so?" She mumbled as quietly as she could, the dragon had more sensitive hearing than a human, and she had noticed it was a trait his master seemed to share.  
"_He is attempting – and struggling to make a cake, tell me, are you excited for this afternoon?"  
_"Who wouldn't be?" She smiled to herself, fighting off the blush on her cheeks.  
"_Rise-san is coming…" _The growl was low.  
"Nao-kun!" She squealed across the hall, all heads beside her target looking up and smiling. "There you are! Do you have plans for tonight?"  
"Tonight? I-I'm sorry Rise-san but I thought I already told you, I do."  
"Aww boo, hey Kanji-kun said something about he's having to hang around with the lads for Christmas…we felt sorry for him, so everyone's having a big party! If we could find senpai, we were going to invite him too."  
"I'm sorry Rise-san I haven't seen him."  
"_You're becoming a better liar mistress, a naughty trait for a detective if I ever saw one" _The dragon teased.

'_I think they're suspicious_' –was all her text to Yu had needed to say.

"_I shall return to his side. Until this evening, my lady."_

-x-x-

He rubbed his left eye gently, almost forgetting about the problems with his sight. All this time and nobody, not even the pint-sized detective had noticed his sight was problematic. He would have to remember to thank his father for the new contact lens he had specially made when he returned to Tokyo. He glanced at his reflection as he rebuttoned his shirt, taking note of the unusually foggy colour his eye had taken, before reaching for the contact lens, making the eyes look identical, and sharpening his vision through his damaged eye. He couldn't remember why his eye was that way, what had happened before he went to the hospital that day.

He shook his head, noticing he had not replied to a message he received earlier from Naoto.

'_Let them be. They can talk all they like'_

'_As you wish, I will be a little late tonight, I need to return home to collect something'._

He returned to reading his book until he heard the knock on the door.

"Naoto-kun, come in." He stood aside and allowed the shivering girl through, the night had taken a sudden chill, he noticed as he shut the door. "Can I take your coat?" He offered.  
"T-thank you senpai, I-why didn't you stay at school today?"  
"Well, I stopped by the hospital to wish Nanako-chan and Dojima-san a merry Christmas, then I wanted to get started on a cake." He watched with amusement as she removed the special shoes she wore. She immediately became three inches smaller.

-x-x-

"_Master…maybe you should ask her to stay…" _ The dragon whispered softly as he waited for Naoto to change. _"She is lonely, as are you. You are her boyfriend, are you not?"  
_"She is a bit shy, I don't want to push her." He reminded the dragon.  
"_Do not give me that, I _am _your inner voice!" _The dragon reminded him.

Both himself and his inner voice felt breathless as they saw her adorned in that girl's uniform.  
"You look cute." He blurted out without thinking.  
"S-stop! You're embarrassing me!" She lit up a dark red, shuffling awkwardly when she remembered she was wearing a skirt. "I think I'll stick to my normal outfit. "

"I'll go get changed." She went to leave but was stopped by a brief murmur. "Did you stay something senpai?"  
"Yes, I said stay here tonight."  
"You want me here tonight? I-I guess I could find some kind of alibi for where I spent the night." She was now a red that rivalled Yukiko's sweater.  
"If you need to head home to get some things, at least let me walk you." She had nervously pointed out that she was wary of the cold and ice on her scooter. "If we walk to the shopping district, it'll be an easier ride straight up the main roads on our scooters."  
"O-of course, please let me change."

"You had something to do with that, didn't you?" She undid the necktie and removed her cardigan, noticing the dragon's silhouette in the mirror. "Dragon?" She noticed the presence had left her to change in peace "Strange beast."  
"Hey Nao-chan, you ready?" She heard her boyfriend calling up the stairs.  
"Just a second!" She called out in her more feminine voice.  
"_Of course I did Nao-chan, I am going to bring about any collective wish you and my master want…" _The growl hung in the air.

"It won't take me long when we get back to the estate, you are welcome to wait in the gardens." She offered as they entered the shopping district. "…This place is certainly quiet on Christmas eve."  
"Well of course, it's a time for lovers to share cake, families to gather round fires and friends to throw parties." He smiled, offering his hand to her. Cautiously she took it, squeezing his hand as if to check he meant the gesture. "Kohyru, can you hear me?" He called out.

"_I know master, I shall bid the velvet sister, her friend and her master a merry Christmas, please enjoy your Christmas."_ The growl was one they both heard. _"May it be a peaceful one."  
_"You too, reptile."

"Where is this party Rise mentioned?"  
"I heard it was going to be at Yosuke-senpai's house, but they had a roach infestation." She shrugged. "I imagine Yukiko-senpai is hosting them."  
"Do they know about where you are?"  
"I don't think they know about us dating, I think they had suspicions over the events back at the estate, but I think they bought the whole restfulness thing you sold them." She blushed beneath her cap, which Yu promptly snatched from the top of her head. "S-senpai! It's so cold, please give me the hat back."

-x-x-

"Yu…you're too warm." She mumbled as she twisted to face away from him, they'd been laying together, no sleep passing between them for some time.  
"I see…" She felt as he freed his arm from beneath her head. When he laid back to join her, he felt her tense upon realising he had removed his shirt.  
"That's not going to work! I-" Her blush got deeper and she could feel her body getting hotter.

It had been her idea to get him to join her on his futon that night, all she wanted was to feel his warmth, his comfort and know she was not alone. She hadn't expected him to just lay flat on his back, listening to her talk, her head against his chest and an arm across his waist, but he seemed comfortable.  
"Nngh." He winced.  
"Is everything ok?" She asked, worry clouding her voice.  
"H-huh, oh well we fell asleep and I still have my –" He stopped himself abruptly.  
"Have your…what?" She noticed he seemed to change in that instant, he seemed tense and nervous.  
"C-could you switch on the lights?" He asked nervously.

He was trying to soothe the soreness in his eye by rubbing it.  
"Senpai, if your eyes are sore rubbing them won't help." She knelt down in front of him, positioning herself between his spread legs.  
"They're not sore…uh…I guess I don't have a choice but to show you." He sighed and let out an awkward chuckle at the same time. "I forgot about you not knowing about my eye…"  
"Your eye, what about it?" She moved his hand and stared intently, it was only then she noticed a slight colour difference between the two.  
"Promise me you won't freak out."  
"Senpai, I have seen dead bodies before I hardly-" He had leaned forward as she spoke and removed something from his left eye, when he looked back up she gasped.  
"I told you not to freak out." He reached for something beside the futon and undid the cap, placing the removed item into it and shaking gently.

"I-I see…your eye is damaged…are you…blind in that eye?" She regained her composure cautiously reaching out to his cheek, he leaned into it, feeling as her fingers stroked against him gingerly, and her eyes stared into his with curiosity.  
"No, partially sighted, I have about eighty percent vision in that eye. I guess after nearly a decade, I should have expected my eye to go that cloudy grey."  
"I can't believe how good that contact lens was." She smiled. "And what did you do to yourself?"  
"Retinal detachment, I was a kid. I think it was an accident. I don't remember, I know I woke up in the hospital, and they made me wear this eye patch. They stitched it together fairly quick after the accident, it stopped me losing sight in that eye completely." Her face showed her sympathy, her eyes downcast, her smile sincere. "My dad had various lenses made for me growing up."

She could see something in his face she had never seen before, it was fear. Her smile warmed him up, and he looked sincere, a smile she was sure only she had seen on their team.  
"Thanks for not screaming." He mumbled shyly.  
"Strange, you have lost ten percent of your overall vision, and yet you are still the best fighter on our team, we should step up our game." She smiled, his laugh was soft as he laid back on the futon. She returned to her previous position. "Hey senpai, I remember my mother once saying a man with scars was a better man than one who didn't. I can see what she means."  
"What?"  
"It shows you have had an interesting life. A painful one, but an interesting one never the less." She snuggled deeper into his chest. "…I love you."  
"I love you too." He whispered against her ear, like his dragon so often did, reminding her when he wasn't there to do it himself.

The bed was empty when she woke, which caused a panic to strike her.  
"Yu-kun!" She cried out, clutching at his sheets tight around her chest.  
"W-what?" He burst through the door in just boxer shorts, still dripping water from the shower, a towel still in his hand, silver hair flat against his head.  
"O-oh I thought you'd-" She blushed as he knelt down next to her and held his forehead against her own, she winced as she felt a warm droplet of water fall from his forehead and onto her face. He paused for a moment before pulling her chin up so he could give her a gentle kiss.

"Did you think I'd left?" He smirked.  
"I…I'm sorry." She could feel as he reached an arm around her waist, soaking her silk pyjamas with water as the arm came into contact. "I didn't mean to disturb your shower." She felt her face burn a dark crimson.  
"I thought someone was dying for a moment." He laughed, which earned him a gentle slap to the arm at her waist.  
"Don't say that!" And without thinking, she twisted to take her position against his chest, head underneath his own, feeling her clothes slowly getting saturated from the water. She reached around his waist, not wanting him to leave her for a while. "I just didn't want to think the first time I ever shared a bed with another person they had left before I woke." She realised how silly it had sounded before she voiced it.

"Silly Naoto. I slept next to you before and didn't leave." He smirked, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her up onto his lap, she squealed as she felt water soak into her bottoms, cooling her skin underneath. "I wouldn't do that. Now, we should get changed." He reached for his phone, flicking it open to reveal a text from Yosuke. "I got this, this morning, and I was planning on making you breakfast before we left. And since I don't want the others getting suspicious, I planned on getting us to the meeting a little early, is that fine by you?"  
"Of course, t-thank you senpai." She nodded towards her bag on his work table. "I'll go and shower now."

He couldn't help but admire her form as she left the room, even under her baggy clothes, and whilst still heavily bound on her chest, he could tell she was a girl blessed with curves. He pressed the towel against his hair, rubbing it thoroughly to remove as much water as he could before drying off and dressing. By the time he heard her light knocking at the door he had dressed, folded his futon and replaced his normal silver wristwatch with the one Naoto had made for him. It may have only had a range of five meters, but it was still an adorable gift idea, especially from a socially anxious creature like her.

He was on the floor reaching for the container containing his contact lens when she came in.  
"Maybe you should leave it out until we leave." She smiled. "I'll help you with breakfast, it'll stop your eye being as sore." She offered, clutching the small container tight and following him down the stairs. When breakfast had been eaten and the plates cleared, she insisted on watching him put the lens in, he relented, walking to the full length mirror fastened onto the downstairs bathroom door and asking her to hold the container still before he skilfully placed the lens back in his eye, he blinked a few times and examined his reflection closely before closing the cap on the container and ruffling Naoto's hair.  
"Shall we be off?"

"What about my bag?" She pointed out.  
"It is hidden behind my futon, I figured if we met them with it they would be curious as to where you stayed last night." He collected her shoes for her, examining the thickened soles before handing them to her. "Did you make the shoes?"  
"Kind of, I took my design to my grandfather, a friend of his made them for me and shipped them out to us. I'm still a bit small for my liking, but I guess it's something I have to deal with."  
"You could wear heels." He offered, laughing at his own comment.  
"As if I'd be seen dead in those ankle breaking excuses for footwear." She scowled.


	11. New Year

He squeezed her hand reassuringly under the table and she stared at his left eye, a quiet promise not to reveal anything to the others before they spied Junes' own Teddie and Yosuke. He glanced down at his phone as it flashed for an email.

_Merry Christmas from the shores of America cousin! I hope your mom and dad actually remembered to wish you a happy holidays too! Missing you loads – hugs and kisses! Mina!_

"Who is Mina, senpai?" Naoto asked curiously.  
"My cousin, one of my dad's sister's kids. She runs some dance studio thing back in Tokyo, she spends a lot of time working in the USA as well, her dad's an American, she must have gone to try to spend time with them. Well least someone in my family, besides Dojima and Nanako, remembered I exist." He text her a reply as he listened in to what the others had to say.

"Excuse me." He flipped his phone open as it rang, and took note of Dojima's call. He quickly informed the others and watched as Naoto was unwillingly dragged into Junes to go cake shopping.  
"Hey so this cousin of yours, she pretty?" Yosuke asked.  
"Way out of your league." Yu teased. "Here I'll get a picture."

A more mature and full bodied version of Risette, long purple locks gracing her head that matched her high necked dancing dress, she was a sight to behold for many men.  
"That's my cousin, Mina Nurakami." The other boys stared wide eyed at the screen.  
"Hey senpai. She's been on TV a coupl'a times before, right? Like in interviews and on random talent shows and stuff." Kanji's face was beet red with embarrassment.  
"Hm…yeah, my dad helped fund her business and stuff, after she appeared on these shows." He closed his phone, much to Yosuke and Teddie's disappointment. "Now stop perving on my cousin."  
"Perving on your- Yosuke you are disgusting!" Chie had appeared from around the corner, delivering a critical blow to his stomach.  
"I-I think Yu-kun meant the cousin who messaged him earlier, not Nanako!" Naoto glanced at Yu who slowly nodded his head.  
"Even so!" Then the brunettes erupted in another argument. The others just sighed in defeat.

-x-x-

"I need a cigarette, I'll be back soon." Dojima excused himself as he stepped outside, suit jacket draped over his shoulders and lit his first cigarette since he returned home.  
"Oh, Dojima-san I wasn't aware you were home." A young housewife who lived further down the road passed by the door. "How is little Nanako-chan?"  
"Getting there." He smiled.  
"Oh, by the way, who is the little blue haired boy I and the other women saw pass by the window a few times with your nephew last night?"  
"Blue haired…?"  
"He's been by before, he caused a right fuss last time, banging on your door until lord knows what time. About a week or so after you went into the hospital."  
"Hm…" He took a drag on the cigarette. "I'll talk to my nephew about it."  
"Good day to you Dojima-san, and merry Christmas."  
"You too." He waved her off, her small dog trotting alongside her.

_Outside. Now._ Was all he sent Yu, and before long, the silver haired boy excused himself and joined his uncle sat against the edge of the vegetable patch wall.  
"I've just heard something rather interesting." He took a sip of the drink in his hand, almost ashamed that it wasn't booze.  
"Hm?" Yu stared off into the distance.  
"Naoto stayed here last night, didn't she?" Yu almost choked on his breath. "That was all the answer I needed. Nothing happened I hope?"  
"What? No, we ate cake and slept next to each other…and…I showed her…the thing with my eye."  
"Hm? Ah I'd almost forgotten about that." He slapped the boy on his back with enough force to push him forward a few inches. "That lens is good, I'll give your father credit. And thanks for not showing Nanako, I think it'd freak her out a little."  
"Did mom get in touch with you?" Yu asked, as he instinctively blinked to reset the lens into its natural position.  
"No, hasn't done since the day I took you in…she forgot again, didn't she?"

"Hey, my cousin, Mina, remembered that's one more than last year who was working away and wanting to help." He rose and looked up the street.  
"Don't worry about that now, you've got us here." He patted the boy on the shoulder before putting out his half smoked cigarette. "And watch yourself around Naoto, I hear the kid's a pretty sharp shot. Don't go getting on her bad side…and her grandfather is not a man to cross. That butler of theirs is a stronger than he looks too from what I hear."  
"Yakushiji?"  
"That's his name, you've met?"  
"Yeah, he didn't seem the strong type."  
"I've heard he once pinned a trespasser on the estate up against a wall and held a knife to his throat until the police showed up one evening." Yu seemed to gulp. "Could be a lie, you know the kind of rumours this town seems to make."  
"Dojima…about rumours…"  
"Don't worry, I won't tell a soul about Naoto." With that he laughed heartily and headed inside.

"Senpai, Dojima-san said you wished to speak to me." Naoto joined him, leaning up against the wall at the side of the house.  
"We got busted, a housewife told my uncle you stayed here last night."  
"Oh…he won't tell anyone, will he?" She blushed.  
"No, and he mentioned your grandfather and Yakushiji too, he said Yakushiji once held a robber at the estate to the wall with a knife at his throat."  
"Ah…well that's true, almost. He chased the robber off the estate and into the street with a set of pruning shears, he was out in the garden." She smiled to herself. "What did he say about grampa?"  
"Not to cross him."  
"My grampa said he's met Dojima-san and his old senpai a few times, he said Dojima was a good man, but his senpai, and his senpai's colleagues were arrogant for the most part. It seemed to insight distaste for them in grampa." She glanced at the door. "Do we have to tell the others about…"  
"No, of course not." They chatted for a while longer about smaller insignificant things before they were interrupted by his familiar message tone.

_I forgot to add, she can stay as often as she likes. Providing nothing untoward or inappropriate happens of course. Nanako would certainly be happy for her company._

"Well, there you go." He handed his phone to Naoto, who blushed at the message.  
"I guess I have to thank Dojima-san when I get chance to." She blushed.  
"Na, that's no problem kid." Dojima appeared through the door, quietly placing another cigarette in his mouth. "And tell the Junes boy to stop discussing your cousin's finer points with the guys in front of my daughter, please." He was holding a glass of liquor in his hands before he sighed.

"Here. A Christmas drink, I used to drink with Chisato when we were underage." He handed Yu the glass. "I was about your age when I met her." Yu smiled into the amber coloured liquid. "My dad was a big fisherman, he used to come here whenever mum nagged him too much, he had some friends out here. Then I moved out here to live with them about your age, and I met her by the river." He shrugged. Yu took a swig of the drink, feeling as it burnt his throat and warmed his belly. Naoto nervously reached for the drink and took a small mouthful.  
"That was more intense than I thought." She shook her head as she felt it burn, before passing the glass back to Yu.  
"Your grandfather still working on that case?"  
"Yes, did he mention it to you at the hospital?" She turned to watch as the man lit the cigarette.  
"Indeed he did, has he contacted you recently?"  
"Yes, he wished me a merry Christmas, and apologised to me, this has been the first Christmas I have spent without a member of my family with me." She shook her head sadly.  
"Stay here for the night, we aren't your family, but we're at least _a _family." Dojima offered as he took the now empty glass from Yu. "And don't tell your mother I let you drink that." He glared at Yu.

"Why do I have to walk you home?" Kanji protested as Rise insisted on walking him home.  
"Kanji, we live closest to the Dojima house, it means that Dojima-san can take the others home."  
"Rise, I don't think you counted right, you see there's still five people, and the old man there shouldn't be driving."  
"Who are you calling old Tatsumi?" Dojima glared. "And I'll be fine, aside from which I can fit all of them in my car."  
"Driving an overloaded car is an offence Dojima-san, isn't it Naoto-kun?" Chie chimed in.  
"It is, but I'm sure as long as one of us were to keep a low profile, and Dojima was to drive safely whilst senpai and Nanako-chan remain here, the point can be overlooked."  
"And by low profile?"  
"Since you will be travelling furthest from here to get to my home on the estate, I suggest we go there first, being the smallest, I would also be willing to climb into the boot of the car."  
"I'm surprised they're letting you drive Dojima-san."  
"the hospital agreed I can drive for short periods of time and well, Natsume's family were quick to pay up damages and even sourced me the replacement car and paid for it." He grabbed his car keys from the table. "Nanako, stay here with your big bro. Don't stay up too late."

"It was so nice to see all your friends today big bro!" Nanako chimed as she closed the door behind the last of the visitors.  
"They're all really happy to see you too Nana-chan." He reached for the teddy bear Teddie had made for her. "I wanted to talk to you for a bit before you go to bed."  
"Ok, but the doctor says I should always be in bed before ten in the evening." Yu glanced down at his watch. _5 minutes.  
_"Ah well, your dad said I should talk to you about something."  
"Oh? Is this about the kotatsu?"  
"No it's not about the kotatsu, um…would you mind if Naoto-kun stayed her tonight?"  
"She's staying here? B-but then why did she get in the car?" Nanako asked, her wide eyes showing her innocence.  
"She's just gone to get more clothes, he's going to drop her off first, then drop all the others off, circle round and get her again."

"Are you and Naoto-kun…um…"  
"Are we what?"  
"Dad told me that before people get married, they do this thing called dating. Then they get engaged, and the man buys a woman a ring, and then they get married." She nibbled her lip. "Um…Naoto-kun wears a ring, but it's on her neck, did you buy her that ring?"  
"H-huh, ring on her?" _The star sapphire ring…_ "No, that belonged to her mom; she wears it to keep it safe."  
"Oh so you're not engaged." She seemed saddened at this prospect.  
"No. No. God don't mention that to your dad."  
"Naoto-kun is so cool, and brave, and smart." Nanako-chan giggled. "Can I call her big sis?"  
"You can ask her in the morning." Yu ruffled the girl's hair. "Oh and Nanako-chan, you don't tell anyone except your dad and me about Naoto-kun and me dating. I'll do you as many magic tricks as you want before you go back for your checkup, deal?"  
"Deal."  
"Good, now go get ready for bed." He smiled, handing her the soft Teddie toy as she disappeared into her room.

-x-x-

"Happy new year Shirogane-san!" The stablehand and his father called out as she passed by for her usual morning walk around the grounds.  
"I was under the impression you would be staying home, you gave the horses plenty enough food and left the gate open all night."  
"We were, but it did snow yesterday, so we decided to come down and check all was ok. We didn't disturb you, did we? You looked deep in thought." The man was bright, it seemed a shame he was working with horses to Naoto, but it was what he enjoyed.  
"I was thinking of nothing of importance. I see Willow did not give you as much hassle today." The cold seemed to not faze the horses as they dug at the snow with their hooves to reveal the frozen grass underneath. "Perhaps it is the cold." She climbed up and over the wooden fence, pacing into the field where the horse stood alongside a smaller, brown stallion.  
"Be careful Shirogane-san, a cold horse is usually a fussy horse." The older man called out, knowing it had taken them a long time to fasten jackets to the horses to put them outside for a while to warm the stables. "I am surprised you are not at the shrine, making your first new years prayers."

"I will be this afternoon." She cautiously reached out to the two horses in front of her, both seeming receptive to her.  
"We ourselves will be going once the stable has warmed, we fastened the shutters last night, and the heaters your grandfather ordered make it nice and toasty in there but we're going to wait a little longer and lock them in, the dogs seem settled in the kennels as well. Warmer than in our house." The younger laughed, being poked in the side with the handle of a pitchfork by his father.  
"Well do not take long, New Years should be spent with loved ones, not horses." Willow nudged her roughly with his nose, as if taking offense to her statement.  
"You say that, but where are you going to celebrate? You were with your friends last night, are you going to spend this time with them as well?"  
"I am not sure, my grampa will not be home in a while yet." She sighed, cold air forming a cloud in front of her face, she pulled her jacket tighter against her. "I'm sure I will survive. Good day to you. Happy new year." She watched as the men took the reigns of the closest horses and pulled them indoors.

"_Master"  
_"Dragon." Yu said to his own reflection as he waited for the shower to heat up. "How goes your learning? It is difficult not being able to call you to listen to."  
_"It is most enjoyable, I have some answers for you. The blonde one has given me a lot to muse over, I shall be returning to your side soon. I hear from the Velvet sister that your and Naoto's bond has grown ever tighter. This place is far roomier too, today, we explored beyond the car, the sister and I. Her master told me it is something even you can not do."  
_"That is true." He ran a hand under the water, the pipes had frozen slightly and it took running water for five minutes before it warmed. "What is it like?"  
_"Like the stars, infinitely beautiful. Are you going somewhere today master?"  
_"The way you said that suggests you already know the answer." He shed the towel and stepped into the shower enclosure.  
_"A suspicion, Naoto has invited you to see her?"  
_"Well we're going to pray at the shrine." He noticed steam had filled the room, and he couldn't help but think he wasn't imagining the serpentine figure wrapped around the glass enclosure.  
"_I see, well until tomorrow master." _The figure blended with the mist in the room before disappearing.

-x-x-

"I actually bought a kotatsu, it's…nice and warm…" she blushed as she invited him to the estate, it was empty after all, and so was a deep part of her that desired his comfort.

She was nervous in his presence as they were caught in a second snow flurry whilst exploring the estate. She had shown him the ornamental gardens, promising that in Spring, when the flowers were in bloom, the trees had leaves and the pond wasn't warmed artificially to stop the fish dying it was more beautiful. The white surroundings stretched across all the garden, dotted with small spots where the family cats had bounced across the two inch deep snow.  
"The cats can only get into the estate through one cat flap, it leads them down into a room my grandfather set aside for the cats. Full of shelves and toys, to stop them damaging his books in the library, or accessing the kitchen, they're probably all asleep in there by now."  
"How many do you have?"  
"Seven."  
"Crazy cat lady." He snickered.  
"What did you just call me!?" She flared.

"The kennels are this way; we have a lot more dogs. They're used all around the estate, from guard dogs to herding duties. When I was a kid, we had a pet dog that stayed in the house, he belonged to Yakushiji, Yakushiji and I used to walk him when my grampa was busy." He was amazed at the unusual pack of dogs that they kept in a building larger than his house, all with their own little groups, fenced off according to purpose on the estate.  
"Your family sure seems to love animals."  
"My grandmother and my mother definitely did, grampa used to tell me my grandma would always be in the gardens feeding birds and petting a dog when she needed to think deeply. My mother used to sit for hours in the cat room, even when she was pregnant with me, to help her relax."  
"We never had animals." Yu fell silent.  
"You should have, they're actually kind of relaxing, and animals were better friends to me than people as a kid." She realised how silly she sounded as she felt his arms around her, she noticed how cold he was. "We should get back, you're freezing." Even his clothes were damp from sliding around in the snow as he lost his footing on the path a few times. "I'll get us some cocoa."

"T-thanks." He said, the warmth of the house making him shiver as he sat on her personal sofa, reaching for the mug she offered him. She glanced over his shivering form.  
"I-if you want…you can stay here. It's lonely without company here. I never noticed before, I guess that's what having friends and a…well…"  
"Does the term 'boyfriend' worry you?" He smirked.  
"N-no it's just…it seems such a childish term and…"  
"Partner then. I'm your partner just not in the same sense Yosuke calls me his." Yu smiled shyly. "And I would like to accept your invitation."  
"Oh well perhaps you should at least head home and get some dry clothes to wear." She noticed the snow had eased.


	12. New Year Part 2

He woke to her curled against him, back to his chest, blue hair cascading down her neck and trapped under the collar of her blue pyjama top. Her bindings removed, he traced her figure down to the gentle curve where she had arched into him in the night to keep warm.  
"Contact lens, where are you?" He grumbled as he paced the large room, hastily throwing his shirt from the day before over his head to stop the chill biting at his chest. After giving up on his search, realising he had most likely left it in the downstairs living room, he watched his partner's sleeping form murmur, pull the covers tighter over herself and fall into a deeper sleep.  
"Rest well." He whispered as he slipped out the door, pulling it too behind her.

He was sure he had heard footsteps. _A maid perhaps? She said they let themselves in, and I imagine they have to start this early to stand a chance of cleaning the place before dark…_ he noticed they were travelling further away, he reasoned they had made a right turn at the top of the staircase and entered a door along the hallway.  
"Well…better be a little more courteous." He mumbled to himself as he gently paced across the hallway towards the stairs.

He had only descended the first step when he heard a door above him creak back open, and what sounded like a metal object being placed at the bottom of the stairs. He reacted in the worst way possible, losing his cool momentarily and feeling his footing slip on the staircase. He felt himself caught by someone before forcibly thrown down onto the third step from the bottom, wincing through the pain that ran through his pelvis.

"Master Shirogane, this is Narukami-san." The voice, deep and low, he recognised as the secretary of the estate. He briefly registered the sound of heavy footsteps behind him and gulped, recognising those to belong to none other than the master himself.  
"What would Narukami-san be doing in the estate at this hour?" Yu registered a sense of amusement in the man's voice, before there was a silence and he noticed Yakushiji nodding to the man at the top of the stairs.

"Here." The man turned from Yu to reach for something on the shelf at the bottom of the stairs, before thrusting a warm cup into the boy's hands, a smile on his face, making Yu even more flushed and nervous. "What happened to your eye Narukami-san?"  
"That's the first thing you ask me?" He felt as he choked on the tea.  
"There's plenty more to ask, you should go to visit the master in his study. Drink up now. Master Shirogane can be a most impatient man." Without another word, the secretary stood straight from his kneeling position before Yu. "And Narukami-san, your shirt is on backwards." He then ascended the stairs after the master.  
"M-my shirt?" He glanced down, noticing the design was wrong, the patterned side on his back. _Nice moves there, idiot._

This most definitely wasn't how he planned on introducing himself to her grandfather as more than just her friend.  
"I have not seen you since the hospital, before we left several weeks ago." The man poured himself tea from the same teapot he assumed that Yakushiji had used before pouring Yu a second one, offering the complimentary sugar and milk and sugar to the silver haired boy. "Yakushiji, you may leave, check on Naoto, she is most likely still asleep." The secretary nodded wordlessly before closing the old door behind him. "Tea?" He waved his hand to the tray in front of him, Yu nervously forced his head to bob up and down.

"The question is, Nurakami-san, why are you in the estate alone, with my granddaughter the day after New Year's?" _Now that I think about it, asking this instead of about my eye was definitely the weirder option.  
_"Um…"  
"I hope you already realise I know of your and her relationship." The stern look of the elder Shirogane had melted into an all knowing smile almost instantly.  
"How did you?"  
"I am a detective, it is my job to know things. I have experience that my granddaughter does not yet have, I don't need to hear your words to know everything you have to say. She is simply an open book to me. Not yet experienced enough to deceive me." The man drank slowly from the cup, placing it down with a satisfied sigh before continuing. "I see what she means about you however, you do not give away a lot." Yu felt himself wince, worried the man was talking about his eye.

"Did you know about me being here?"  
"No, I had a suspicion." The man shook his head. "After all, Naoto-chan makes for an awful liar, and her alibi Christmas Eve was flimsy as well."  
"And there I was thinking she was some ace detective." Yu smiled to himself, turning his gaze down to his trembling hands, seeking warmth from the cup.  
"She is very much so, but she lacks life experience, which often makes her excuses and explanations weak." There was a brief silence. "I trust your uncle and cousin are well?"

"What?" His question had caught him off-guard he shook his head before smiling. "Yes. They've been released from the hospital temporarily for New Year. They're due back soon for further treatment."  
"You see through your left eye, do you not?"  
"Hm? Ah, wait, how did you know I could see? It's not like you can make out my general eye anymore." Yu was genuinely shocked at that statement.  
"You move your eye to focus, I can see you are trying to focus the left eye as well."  
"I can see your reputation is well deserved." Suddenly feeling a little more at ease, he reached for his cup. "My retina was detached in an accident when I was a kid. They operated on it fast enough to save around eighty percent of my retinal cells."  
"You must wear a contact lens to cover the eye, one that is tinted to remove that hazy colour from your partial sightedness." Yu nodded before drinking his own cup of tea. Silence fell between the two of them.

"Shirogane-san?" Yu asked, looking down once more.  
"What is it boy?"  
"Am I in trouble?"  
"Perish the thought." The man turned his attention to the opening door, a bleary eyed Naoto entering.  
"Grampa I-! Senpai!" She blushed brightly as she realised Yu had been in the study with her grandfather. "Grampa I can explain!"

"Hush Nao-chan, I have no need of explanation. Take a seat." She took her seat beside Yu, placing the white container with Yu's contact lens inside that Yakushiji had pressed into her palm on the desk between her and Yu.  
"I passed Yakushiji in the hall, he told me to pass this on to you, Yu-sama." She felt strange as the words passed her lips.

-x-x-

"Welcome to the velvet room."  
"Happy New Year! W-where's Marie-chan?" Yu glanced around shocked. "And that persona of mine?"

They had discussed Marie, and Yu did not hesitate in agreeing to find and save her. It was then the dragon made its appearance, the gold beast trying to occupy as much of the car as it could.  
"He has been a rather difficult guest." Margaret was smiling despite her words.  
"Master, there is so much I understand. But before I ask, what has strengthened your bond to Naoto so?"  
"Getting busted falling down the stairs in the Shirogane estate by her grandfather." The dragon had the smile of a Cheshire Cat.

"As myself and Kohyru have discussed, for some reason, he does not recall the purpose he has in Naoto's mind." She poured Igor another glass of liquor, offering one to the dragon as well, it released one of the orbs in its claw, allowing it to hover above its head before wrapping its claw gently around the crystal. "We have come to the conclusion this has something to do with the memories both you and her have locked up in your respective skulls."  
"In other words you don't know and you picked something we shared in common." Yu smiled. "Tell me what you have learned."

"He is able to pass between the pair of you as both of you have a common interest. Namely in her…unusual behaviour and past." It struck Yu that Igor was choosing his words carefully. "It could also be that you and her share a common trait – you are both used to feeling alone. Albeit for different reasons." The long nosed gentleman waved his hand, indicating that Kohyru was invading his personal space, the dragon had completely blocked out the window with its tight coiling, threading between all he furniture in the back of the car as well.  
"When we attacked her persona, she temporarily allowed herself to drop her guard. The way our bonds works mean we, or rather I, would have sensed this, you know my hearing is good enough to hear a heartbeat of a person – I offered her the goodness of your heart. Subconciously, she took that chance."  
"However…" Igor drew attention back to himself, Yu only glanced above the man's head to watch his persona drink the glass, crushing the ice in its jaws before swallowing them too. "Fate may have something to play with it. It may simply be you are fortune's fool."

"You see, the wheel of fortune is a difficult one, it could be that Kohyru's presence in her mind is simply a random play of fate." Margaret explained, placing the compendium on the table before Yu and Igor, the dragon casting a shadow over the book, white smoke gently released in waves from the jaw as it exhaled. "Kohyru could be viewed as the ultimate form of the only individual whom you shared in common as a social link. He has explained himself that he represents Ryatoro Dojima, your uncle."  
"Adachi worked at the station too." Yu pointed out.  
"She found him an insufferable, intolerable fool." The dragon snarled. "Prior to her introduction to the group, your 'Investigation Team' as it were, he would have been the only human you both interacted with in common."  
"They didn't get along when they first met, my uncle got drunk after being upstaged by her."  
"Yet they still spoke, perhaps because your uncle is acquaintances with her grandfather." The dragon growled.

"You do not have many memories before your arrival to Inaba, yes?" Margaret watched him quietly, Yu glanced at the floor. "For all we know, you could have other ties."  
"How does this relate to my serpentine friend?" Yu asked, the dragon leaning his head down, awaiting attention. Yu placed his hand on the dragon's head, the smoke warmed him, its skin strangely hot to the touch.  
"Your memories are locked deep away, that bubble of hers contains all her childhood memories. Who's to say you did not meet in years gone?" Yu was wide eyed, although only the right eye displayed his shock. "Perhaps that would explain why she was so receptive to my invasion of her thoughts. With her childhood though, I doubt she will recall any happy memories or strangers."

"So what will you do now, dragon?"  
"I feel she still needs me at her side." It explained. "Thus I will be whispering in her ear to follow her, and your own, desires for longer yet. And that shadow of hers requires more assistance yet."  
"Assistance?"  
"She still wants to believe she can do a lot on her own master, the split personality is fading, leaving only her child self, but the other self is still in control on occasion." The dragon shook its head slowly. "Aside, she makes for good conversation. As chaotic and locked down her mind is, the girl is as bright as starlight and sharp as nails." The beast faded into blue energy, flowing into the card in Yu's palm.

"I will begin a search for Marie." Margaret smiled softly. "Happy new year Narukami."  
"Happy new year, I have to be off now, I have other greetings to be giving." He stood and bowed, turning his back to the velvet sister and her master. "I trust he caused you no hassle."  
"None we could not handle." The woman explained. "Good day."

In a town the size of Inaba, he was still surprised that he had not been caught leaving the velvet room, stepping out from a wall as it would appear. He only had two more people to visit, well, one person and a small furry beast to be exact.  
"I guess you got lots of offerings." He petted the fox gently on his head. "Happy new year Mr. Fox." He took his place on the steps in front of the offering box, the fox gently sitting beside him, yipping at the attention it received. "I guess you can live in peace now we saved Inaba." He hadn't noticed the figure, dressed in dark jeans and her normal blue longcoat, blue cap firmly in place on her head. The fox noticed first, turning its attention from him to the new visitor at the shrine, a slight growl erupting from its lips before realising she was familiar to him. She chose to keep her distance from the fox, it made her nervous.

"I thought I would find you here senpai, have you been praying here again?" She asked.  
"Talking with Kohyru and playing with Mr. Fox. Kohyru wished to discuss what he learned with me." Yu rose from his position at the steps, the fox staying in place. "Do you not want to wish Mr. Fox a happy new year too? I was going to visit you after we were done here."  
"The fox makes me anxious." She stepped back gently.  
"Anxious? The fox would have bit me by now if it was aggressive." Yu smiled. "Be brave."

"_Acknowledge you are afraid and use that precious logic of yours to deduce why." _She swallowed hard as she heard the dragon's call.  
"I hear him too." Yu smiled. "He is right, why are you afraid of the fox? You do not fear Kohyru." She blushed at that realisation.  
"The dragon is the one that saved my life."  
"Did the fox put yours in danger?"  
"No, he's just a fox." Naoto looked as if a lightbulb suddenly lit up in her head. "Just…a…fox. _Vulpes vulpes_." The fox paced to the side of Yu who knelt down beside the fox.  
"He has teeth, he has claws, he has a good bite. Kohyru has those things. And I can bite pretty well too." He winked, smirking as she blushed and huffed at him.  
"Can I pet you?" She knelt down in front of the graceful red fox, admiring the polka dot neckerchief it wore, it lowered its head to her. "Who gave you your little accessory there?" She reached her hand out and the fox gently pressed its head up to meet her hand.  
"Naoto." Yu let her fuss it for a moment before directing her attention back at her. "…it's a fox, he can't answer your question about his dress sense." He let out an 'eep' as he heard her draw her gun at him. "I'm sorry." He smiled despite himself.

"Did your grandfather say anything after I left?" He asked, escorting her back to the estate after they had discussed most of the information that Kohyru and the velvet room residents had offered.  
"No, he just said he already suspected as much, he also welcomed you to stay at the estate whenever you liked, as long as we tell him you're there this time, of course."  
"Random point whilst we're walking, you look better without the bindings."  
"Don't you mean _you _look less gay?" She shot back, for once not losing her composure.  
"Eh, a little." He shrugged.

-x-x-

"Well I guess the ski trip is postponed." Rise pouted as they hovered over Yu's sick form.  
"It must have been a killer cold to put senpai down for a while." Kanji pointed out.

"_Naoto-kun, is that anger I sense in you?" _The dragon growled._ A little, yes. _Despite herself she found herself responding to him. _Won't his contact lens continue to damage his eye? Will he get better? Will he be ok under the kotatsu for so long? Why is Rise sulking over something as unimportant as a ski trip?  
_"_To her, being as isolated as she was due to her lifestyle choices, the ski trip is not a minor thing."  
_"_Silly Nao-chan, the others will all know about you and him dating if you're not careful!" _Her shadow chimed in.

That dragon had stayed at her side since Yu had fallen ill. She sensed him calling to her in the back of her head whenever her mood went low. Whenever she found herself trying to bite back the urge to yell at a member of the team, or when she was tempted to go and assist Teddie in caring for her partner, instead of going to help her grandfather and Yakushiji, the dragon would call her back in line.

"What is that ridiculous green tarp Willow is covered in?" She asked, balancing carefully on the icy fence.  
"Oh good day Naoto-sama." The young stablehand was pulling another horse across the field, assessing its hooves and walk as he did. "Your grandfather bought it back with him, he had contacted the man who gave him the horse. He said that the horse behaves differently when covered in that weird outfit. They apparently used it underneath the metal armour and saddle during the competitions."  
"His friend shipped this to him?"  
"Indeed, and sure enough whilst Willow is in it, the horse doesn't mind being outside."  
"Impressive."  
"Are you thinking about something?" The stablehand walked towards her, he was the closest person to someone her own age on the estate. "I know as a humble servant of the estate it is not my business –"

"I'm just worried about when my friend goes back to Tokyo." She cut off his sentence.  
"I thought he wasn't returning until the start of April, that is a long way from now m'lady."  
"I know just…"  
"Ah, young love." He smiled. "You are worried when he leaves, a part of you will leave too. Tokyo is a train ride away, your grandfather is liberal with his control of your movements, I am sure that he would permit you to visit him on weekends, after all, who's never skipped school before." He winked.  
"Please, stick to your duties. As a stablehand you are a good man, as a guidance counsellor, not so much."  
"Your words are cruel Naoto-sama." He bowed slightly, laughing as he did so.

-x-x-

It had been a long time since she dreamed of Kohyru, his presence that night filled her with a warming comfort.  
"You are worried for him." Kohyru growled.  
"Of course." Naoto glanced down at the whiteness beneath her.  
"My master was called fortune's fool, I can see now why Margaret referred to him as so."  
"What?"

"Riddle me this, young one: Of no use to no one, yet absolute bliss to two. The small boy gets it for nothing, the young man has to work for it. The baby's right, the lover's privilege, the hypocrite's mask. To the young girl it brings faith, to the married woman hope. What am I?"

"What are you-?"  
"I speak of the simplest desire you and my master share. When you have my answer, you must show him what I speak of." The dragon knew what she needed was something to occupy her mind.


	13. Hot to the Touch was He

A/N: Wow this took far longer than I expected it to. Had a lot of personal issues revolving around health, promise it's getting fixed, sorry to all here who read and enjoy this piece :)

As a side note I've changed my username on here, having had the same one since 2008 when I joined!

Enjoy reading and sorry again!

* * *

"You're on your feet again, Narukami-san. Naoto-sama will be most pleased." The estate secretary stood at the doorway. "What brings you to the estate today?"  
"I was just in the area."  
"Doubtful, there is no need for you to travel to beyond outskirts of Inaba for no reason." The secretary pushed his sunglasses back onto his face after they were slightly askew on his face. "Alas, I digress, please come in." He stood aside, pulling the door wider as he did.  
"Is Naoto-kun home?"  
"She was in the study with her grandfather, please wait in the living area and I will collect her for you." Yu nodded, heading into the room where he had first slept beside Naoto. He felt a slight burning in his cheeks. He smiled to himself and shook his head. "I am sorry Narukami-san, her grandfather said she had mentioned going for a walk, he said he saw her heading down the path over the other side of the hill."  
"Do you know where she might have gone?"  
"When she is wanting to be alone in winter, she's often wondering around in the woods just beyond the stables." He pondered for a moment. "I'm sure the stablemaster and his son may have seen her pass by, they'll most likely be in the kennels, she'd have gone right by. Excuse me a moment sir." Yu watched as the man dialled a number on his phone and spoke in a hushed tone.

"You'll have to sprint, please be careful. The paths here are cleared of snow, but it is still icy." Yakushiji warned as the younger man sprinted off down the cleared paths across the gardens and down the side of the hill opposite the entrance. He passed all manner of buildings on either side of the house, which he was curious as to what they contained.  
"Hey there." The stablehand pulled up beside him. "Dad sent me, said you need a lift. Get in, you can catch up to Naoto, she stopped by to play with the dogs in the kennels. Dad's trying to keep her occupied, sit back for a while."  
"_Master, there is something different about Naoto. Her walls around me seem to be weaker, perhaps she realised how much she missed the comfort I bring her when you are not around."  
_Yu's eyes snapped back open aware that the car had stopped.  
"Ah, back in the land of the living, she mentioned you had been unwell, something about a skiing trip too. She has been most distant these last few days, sitting in the fields talking to the animals." He opened the door to his truck, before watching Yu climb out of the other door.  
"Thanks."  
"No problem, send my father out, we need to go back to the stables, the farrier will be coming soon."

"How mysterious are you dogs? What kind of a hold do you have on humanity with those strange eyes?" Naoto knelt down, fussing some of the smaller dogs used for herding the birds the estate kept into their enclosures.  
"Life _is _mystery, lots and lots of unanswered questions waiting for people like you to solve them." Yu realised how strangely philosophical he sounded.  
"Senpai?" She twisted on her own axis, stumbling up to her feet. "S-senpai!" He fell back against the wall, wrapping his arms around her as she jumped at him in excitement before stepping back with a deep blush after realising she lost her composure. The older man who was in the stables with her smiled, bowed to Yu and left without a word.

"I was trying to surprise you, I guess it worked." He reached for her hat and pressed it atop his own head.  
"Are you well?" She flicked her cap off his head and pressed her hand to his head, testing it against her own. "Why did you not tell me you were coming?"  
"I fancied a walk, I didn't have anywhere else to spend time." He knelt down and collected her hat from the floor.  
"Well, would you care to walk with me, the woods beyond the fields are quiet this time of year, and the meadow beyond the woodland will also be empty. Yakushiji suggested we should take the horses, there is a marked pathway through the woodlands that has no streams or hidden tripfalls, and the horses are rather fond of the snow."

-x-x-

"Are you sure Willow is a wise choice?" She objected to the stablehand as he bought the dapple gray stallion indoors, along with her own, smaller brown stallion that her grandfather had bought her when he realised she was too small for Willow.  
"He may be wily sometimes, but since he's been wearing his little outfit here, he seems more responsive." The man turned to Yu. "Of course, it is your choice, I will saddle up the horse, see if you can ride him round the stable, the hay is deep here. It'll break your fall."  
They had managed to fasten the saddle to the horse over the top of the knight's outfit thanks to some slots where the saddle straps would have originally gone. The older stablehand had taken care to find equipment that would fit over Yu's head, and packing a deep rucksack with supplies should they chose to stop in the snow, Yakushiji had even visited to offer them food.

"Who does the rest of this gear belong to?" Yu asked, wincing as the stablehand pulled the strap under his chin tighter.  
"Most of it belongs to Yakushiji's daughter, or myself and my son, as well as some of the regular guests to the estate." He explained. "They're like family, same as us, to Shirogane-san."

"It's like an entirely different horse. Ever since my grandfather bought him here, he had been wily and difficult to maintain control of, yet he seems as sedate as when I first saw him at the jousting tournament." Naoto pulled her horse's reigns tight as the horse fell in beside Yu on the larger stallion. "You are ok riding him, aren't you senpai?"  
"He's fine." He smiled, the horses were taking a gentle walking pace, gently nudging himself and Naoto side to side as they shuffled along the pathway down towards the woodlands, guided gently by Naoto. "For someone who is nervous about horses, you seem fine."  
"I see you have been speaking to the stablehand." She shuffled in her seat, feeling her hair brush against her neck. "I am not nervous per se, I just never took well to learning to ride, I often grew tired quickly. I was frustrated the other people learnt faster than I."  
"Others?"  
"Yakushiji has a family - he has a daughter. When I was a kid, my grampa tried to encourage me to get along with the kids of the estate workers." She sighed, a cloud of mist rising from her mouth. "May we talk about something else?"

He was taken aback by how quiet the woods were, the only sound that echoed against the leafless trees was the sound of twigs breaking against the horse's hooves as they made their way across the path.  
"Bring me back here in spring." Yu broke the silence. "Or at least when I come back here from the city."  
"I…" she wanted to smile and give him the answer she had in her head, but instead she felt a sadness sweep over her, remembering he wouldn't be here much longer.  
"_Poor thing, she is sad about your departure." _Yu winced as his persona crawled forward, whispering to itself.  
"That's a long time from now." He knew what to say to make her feel better. She smiled despite herself, it was a trait she hoped to learn one day – to know what to say to make a situation better.  
"I'd like to have you here again." She felt a blush as she glanced down at the neck of her horse.

"Promise?"  
"Promise." Naoto nodded. "Please Yu-kun, wait here for a moment." He gave the reigns a gentle pull, the horse beneath him coming to a stop.  
It was a clear perfect white between a circle of black tree bark.  
"In springtime, this is a beautiful meadow blooming with pink, white and blue flowers, as you can see, in winter, it is a strange silent wonderland."  
"I agree, may we?" He commanded the horse to continue forward, ruining the perfect white landscape with footsteps.  
"Perhaps you would like to stop for a while senpai? I'm sure the stablemaster provided us with tools to dig the snow and start a fire." She climbed from the back of her horse, landing in the snow with a muted thud. "He must have stuffed these rucksacks with something." She guided her horse across to a raised area in the centre of the meadow.

"Where are we going?" He gently nudged Willow to follow after her.  
"When I was a kid, I used to camp out here." Naoto began stroking snow from a pile of rocks in the centre of the meadow as Yu climbed from his own horse. "Yakushiji would bring tents, and he would start a fire between these rocks and let me watch stars until I fell asleep. As such, these rocks were left here for starting a fire again."  
Despite her objecting to help, considering he had only just recovered from a cold, he was able to assist her in digging a clearing and tethering the horses, which began to chew at frozen grass before them, warmed by the fire.

"We shouldn't stay long. Snow has not fallen in a while, but we are exposed to a cold wind." She pulled her coat tighter around her, the cold biting aggressively at her as she removed her riding helmet. "You are still unwell."  
"I'm fine, I managed to walk here alone didn't I?" He teased, opening the flask of soup that Yakushiji had thrust into his rucksack. "Your secretary is a good cook."  
"He is." Naoto agreed.

They had finished eating and tending to the horses when Yu began to pace around the field.  
"What are you doing?" She asked, nervously stumbling in the snow after him, catching his wrist as he wondered away.  
"Enjoying the snow." He tugged his wrist forward, sending her tumbling into them, pushing him onto his back in the snow.  
"S-senpai I-!" She struggled to remain composed as she realised she had landed straddling his waist. He had sunk down into the snow, she could feel the snow against her hips, not realising how deep the snow was. She tried to stumble up to her feet, feeling a sharp tug on her elbows holding her into place. "What are you doing?"

_He's such an insufferable fool sometimes! What is he doing? Does he not realise he could make himself ill again!  
"Silence young woman. My master is strong enough and healthy enough to enjoy playfulness. Answer my riddle, and I will go into slumber." _ The dragon had called her a woman, she smirked to herself.

Without hesitation, she sank her hands down into the snow either side of his face, adjusting her body to cover his own and pressed her lips to him. She quickly scrambled to her feet as his grip loosened on her arms.  
_"Master, I require slumber, please let her know she answered my riddle correctly."  
_"Correct answer." He could feel the cold biting hard against his body as he lay back in the snow.  
"Get up you silly fool before you get sick." She smirked at him, shivering as she noticed her damp coat biting at her. "We need to return." Without a word, just unspoken understanding between them, they gathered up the equipment that needed to be returned and loosened the tether on the horses.

"Hey come here for a sec." Yu had mounted his horse first, calling the beast to trot up alongside Naoto before offering his hand down to her.  
"What do you require?" She asked, confused as to what he was asking. She knew what an offered hand meant, but what was he trying to offer her atop the horse.  
"This is a horse bred to wear a full suit of armour and carry a man in a steel suit at high speed, right?"  
"Yes, that is traditionally what happens during a tournament like what Willow was for."  
"Then don't you want to ride him? Just once, I'll stay here with you."  
"Are you asking me to-?" She felt her anxiety clawing at her again.  
"Look, we don't tell anyone about our dating, it means I have to keep my hands to myself and watch what I say all the time." He had the smile of a devil, and she was falling for it. "I'll help you up, I promise." He shuffled back on the saddle, the horse protesting underneath him. "Quick now."  
"Take me to the TV world and let me see the dragon, and do the same for me then, and I will heed your request."  
"I already said I'd take you to see him. Now are you coming up or what?" She offered him the reigns of her own horse before making her way to the other side of Willow.

Aided by her light weight and his strength, she managed to hoist herself up onto the saddle, half across her partner's lap, half mounted on the saddle. She felt awkward, her body rigid against his chest. She slid back into a normal position in the saddle as she felt him climb down and began fastening her own horse's reigns to Willow's, securing it tight in case her horse tried to bolt and fastening the rucksacks to the smaller horse. Sitting on the edge of a saddle was not comfortable for him, but he was rather content that she was comfortable and pressed gently against his own form.  
"S-senpai!" She cried out as he wrapped an arm around her waist, leading both the horses back up the path through the woodland.

-x-x-

"We are meant to be playing hide and seek with Nanako-chan!" She protested, breathing laboured as she felt pain in her ribcage.  
"I wanted you to meet him." Yu helped her to her feet, swatting away the hand holding her gun.  
"Mistress." The horns stood high above Yu, the beast's head hidden behind Yu's body. The gold body was looped around his own once, the beast at rest on the ground. It nudged Yu aside with its snout, a low growl erupting from his lips.  
"It's nice to be able to see and speak to you, in person, now we are safe." The dragon leaned across Yu's body, his neck across the student, eyes staring into Naoto's as she spoke.  
"Can I touch you?" She offered out her hand.  
"Do not ask." It bowed its head, snout to the strange stage beneath their feet. Cautiously she felt her hand brush against the scales above his nostrils.

To her shock, the beast was warm – despite being serpentine, the smoke it exhaled was white, warm around her wrists, unlike the hot yellow or black smoke she sometimes saw it blowing during combat or in her dreams. She noticed now, level with its eyes that the left eye was slightly more dull than the bright red ruby right eye.  
"Your eye…"  
"Reflects my master's." It growled. Yu wiggled free, trapped beneath the underside of its jaw and the reptile's body.  
"I promised you could meet him, so here we are." He petted the dragon's head, receiving a soft growl of delight from the dragon.

"What did you need of me?" It asked.  
"I have some questions."  
"Good, I have some riddles for you." It growled in delight. "I am blessed with the intelligence of my master, and Inzanagi, who I am in servitude to. I enjoy testing your logic, master, you know you may join." Yu smiled, taking a seat before the dragon, who was now lifted off the ground, hovering a foot above them.

"Why do you and he not share the same thoughts?" She asked curiously.  
"You and your persona do not either, however, he and I are further apart than yourself and your own."  
"How is that possible?"  
"I am an eternal paradox that has plagued scientist, philosopher, man and woman alike. I exist, I allow you to make decisions, and yet I am already pre-determined." The dragon growled, the smoke becoming black from its jaw, a flicker of flames.

"You are….free will." Naoto pondered for a moment before her answer.  
"There is your answer, I have free will, just like your own persona. We have a will slightly different to your own, and that allows us to think and act independently of yourselves." Naoto fell silent, as if making sense of what the beast was saying.  
"As in, you and I will always be able to act and think independently of our personas, because our personas are born from a deep, dark part of us. A part of us, that at least in our case, is locked off from the rest of our thoughts, memories and dreams."  
"We are granted free will as a result." Naoto rubbed her temples, feeling a calling from her own persona.  
"Thank you Nao-chan!" The persona was free to move around, immediately stumbling towards the dragon before turning its attention to its master then back to the dragon, who did not deny the now Yamato-Sumeragi climbing atop its neck.  
"You are an epithet to the emperors of Japan, yes?" The dragon asked. "Well, something as noble as you may climb atop my back."

"I know I am serving my purpose to you mistress, even if I know not what that purpose is." The dragon began rattling his neck, shaking her persona around, who was enjoying the defiant behaviour of the dragon, trying to reach the dragon's horns before it threw the persona from its back.  
"Well, those two seem to appreciate each other." Yu smirked to himself, kneeling close to the television, listening for the voices of his friends and Nanako, not hearing them yet.  
"When I see him in my sleep or those lucid dreams, he is always playing with my shadow self." Naoto suddenly felt contemplative, her body was tense, huddled up against herself all of a sudden. Such an obvious display of emotion from the shy detective did not go unmissed.

"Everything ok?" Yu moved across, taking a seat beside Naoto.  
"Yeah, I was just thinking. That dragon is always there whenever I _need _him, even if I never wanted to admit it to myself. When you told me you loved me, he just sat and listened. At the culture festival, he was the one that talked me round. Not you, not Kanji, it was like he was whispering in my ear all the time. I even saw him briefly before I fell asleep at the inn." The dragon had succeeded in throwing her persona from its back, only to have it balancing on using the weapon it held, hooked onto the dragon's horns. "He said he offered me the goodness of your heart and I subconsciously took it, correct?"  
"That's what the dragon told me." Gently, the dragon lowered itself to the ground using its tail to flip the other persona's weapon from its horns.  
"If that is true, then I'm glad I did." Naoto stood, brushing dust from her trousers before making her way towards the two personas, who looked ready to have a mock fight with each other.

"I don't think that wise Yamato-Sumeragi, he would beat us hands down." The persona nodded in response. "We should be returning soon." She turned to the dragon, desperate to feel the warm scales beneath her fingers one final time before they returned to Inaba.  
"Before you go mistress, I have a present for you." It dropped its head to the ground as her persona hoisted her into the air and placed her with her back against his horns.  
"H-hey what are you doing?" Gradually the dragon began to lift itself back into the air, she reached for one of the horns in response clinging onto it for dear life.  
"Do not worry, he won't hurt you." Her own persona promised as it waved, Yu beside it as she rose slowly into the air. Suddenly the dragon came to a stop.

All of the TV world was visible from that height, from the shopping district to her secret base.  
"It's strangely beautiful." She removed the glasses from her face, letting the fog overtake the world beneath her and the dragon for a moment. "Like a world trapped in the clouds." She placed them back on her head.  
"You can have a better view, if you are confident, you may climb up my horns." The dragon offered, nervously she shuffled to face the horns.  
"You have not steered me wrong before." She still held onto the top of one horn as she spread her legs between the centre and leftmost one at the top. "This is amazing." Suddenly she felt a sinking sensation, followed by her own persona plucking her from the dragon's back.

Yu was staring intently at the TV where he could hear Nanako calling.  
"Naoto-chan! Big bro!" She called.  
"We should return." He smiled to her, the dragon nudging her back gently with his snout.  
"Until we meet again my lady, back in the world known as 'Inaba'"


	14. Senpai's Singing

It was nearing the end of January, the group were settling down to a rooftop feast, courtesy of Aiya's delivery service when a phone ringing broke the silence. All eyes turned to Yu.  
"Who's phone is this?" He noticed the phone number definitely wasn't Japanese in origin.

"Thank god! I finally got a hold of you!" The voice was excitable over the other side. "This isn't a bad time, right?"  
"Is that you Mina-chan?" He could barely contain the excitement in his voice.  
"Mina…isn't that?"  
"Oh my god that's his really cute cousin!" Yosuke bubbled. Chie punched his arm.  
"Trust you to remember that Yosuke-kun." She grumbled.  
"I'm not disturbing you am I? It sounds like there are people there with you." The older girl giggled. "I got a call from your dad today, so I finally got the phone number for your new cellphone today."  
"You…spoke to my dad?" He asked, struggling with the words.  
"I take it you haven't then. No he rang me, garbled a load of business speak at me, then asked about meeting me for a drink tomorrow." The girl explained.

"A drink? You're still in America right?"  
"Um-hm, I'm in Los Angeles. I just got back from Hawaii." She explained. "Your dad's in the area on some business meet for a week or something, would be nice if it was a family meeting rather than the meeting of a rich stuffy uncle and his stupid brat niece." He could sense her pouting. "So…are you making friends out there?"  
"How about you, you weren't exactly popular in America last I knew…"  
"Oh they're over that, I may have been centre of the news for a couple of months years ago, but the news focus has changed. They treat me really well out here, I got worse treatment back in Tokyo." He couldn't help but glance over to Naoto. His cousin and his girlfriend may have had entirely different reasons for being rejected but he couldn't help but draw similarities.

"You never answered my question about your friends." She giggled. "I didn't call you in class or something, did I? I mean it's about midday for you, about sixteen hours ahead of the time for me here, so it's eight in the evening here."  
"No it's my lunch break. As for my friends, give me a moment they can all speak to you."  
"Okay…" Her voice suddenly boomed out across the rooftop, he had switched his phone to loudspeaker.  
"Everyone say hi."  
"Hi!" Everyone yelled in unison.  
"H-hi, I'm Mina Nurakami, Yu's older cousin." The girl on the phone began. "Calling you from my home for almost the last year, the United States."  
"H-hey can we introduce ourselves?"  
"Perhaps a webcam chat would be better for that cousin, although your dad mentioned you didn't bring any of your musical instruments or your laptop to Inaba, why?"

"You play?"  
"Yes, you know I can play the guitar."  
"He's a pretty famous singer and violinist back in Tokyo." His cousin cut in.  
"No, I just happened to be pretty good at it in school and at those stupid shows you sang at." He grumbled suddenly switching the phone back so only he could hear her, earning some confused and coy looks from the rest of his friendship group.  
"Hey um…I can't keep you too long, but I was wondering if you knew of anyone who had one of those fancy satellite dishes that picked up American Television too? I'm going to be doing my first live sing in America…since…you know…" Her voice fell silent. "And, I'll drop you an email with all the details and stuff, give me a call on webcam if you can."  
"When are you going to be on?"  
"Saturday night, eleven thirty, that would make it about three thirty on a Sunday for you guys." She brightened up at his genuine interest. "I'd like to see your friends too, oh and the T.V. guys wanted me to give them a video of you singing, cause they want me to talk about you during our interview. So I was thinking that Phantom of the Opera one from last year, what do you say?"  
"That sounds great, look I'll borrow a laptop off one of my friends, can we speak after I'm done with school and things, say five?"  
"Five p.m. for you guys is one in the morning here…" She paused for a moment. "I guess I can rearrange with your dad so I can meet him in the afternoon." With that, the line went dead.

"A satellite dish that picks up American television, those exist?" Chie asked, turning to Yosuke.  
"Yeah, we sell them at Junes, they're really expensive. Not very popular though, most people around here don't speak a lick of English, why would they need one? They all do these translation subtitles by default now though." Everyone, Teddie more so than the others, looked pleadingly at the others, with the exception of Naoto, who stared off into space at the edge of the group. "We do tend to sell them to rich families in the surrounding area, something about there being some posh private schools around here who all teach English as a second language."  
"Do you have one of those fancy satellite dishes then Yosuke-senpai?" Rise asked curiously. "I really would like to see what senpai's cousin looks like, her voice sounded kinda familiar to me."

_I forgot Rise might recognise her_ Yu shook the thought from his head.

"No, we might sell them, but even my family can't afford one of those." The group fell silent.  
"Then perhaps I can help." Naoto suddenly spoke up.  
"Y-you have one."  
"Myself and Yakushiji speak English, my grandfather and my parents both worked in America, we have a home cinema system at the estate. Along with what is effectively a small movie theatre, I'm sure I have seen American shows being played in there. Yakushiji tends to watch old sitcoms when grampa lets him have time off." Naoto suddenly noticed all eyes on her, she felt nervous under their gaze. "I-I can ask my grandfather if we can get American shows."  
"I don't think my cousin's music is quite to your taste."  
"She does those dance tracks and remixes of American songs and some kind of weird opera rock thing right?" Rise asked, her eyes sparkling as she suddenly realised who his cousin was. "Wait, she's in America but wasn't she-"  
"Don't Rise." Yu warned, his tone authorative. "Do not mention what I think you are, yes that is my cousin you're thinking of. She entered some American talent contest when she was twelve, that's how the world learned about her." The bell rung, and Naoto and Yu both breathed a sigh of relief.

"A famous violinist?" She smirked. "You could use work in my opinion."  
"Thanks." He rolled his eyes. "I didn't bring my violin with me, so I was more than a little rusty by that point."  
"I guess I should let you off, although if you can sing like she said, maybe I could hear that one day?"  
"You will if we can get her on TV, they wanted to show a video of me singing, and ask her about me." He shrugged.

-x-x-

"Ah it's working!" His cousin yelled tiredly. Purple hair, straightened neatly, flowed down from her head and across her shoulders. Her face was young, no make-up adorned her features, but it was late at night for her and not unexpected. Around her neck was a silver scarf, tied into a knot to the right side of her neck, from the base a small necklace of silver half moon could be seen. Her shirt was a plain black high necked t-shirt.  
"Hey Mina-chan, it's been a while."  
"I know! Look at your face! You look so grown up!" She giggled in delight. "Hm? What was that?"  
"Oh, a Junes theme song, we're sat in the food court at the one here in Inaba." Yu explained. "My friend leant me his laptop."  
"Ah a Junes! Reminds me of home. Classier than Wal-mart, for sure." She chuckled to herself. "Hm? Is that Uncle Dojima's daughter?" Nanako was nervously peering at the laptop screen from his left, the others were all getting drinks and snacks, or finishing work in the case of Teddie.

"Say hi Nanako, this is your cousin, Mina." He didn't want to explain that technically Nanako and Mina were not blood cousins.  
"H-hi"  
"Hiya! I've never met you in person before, Dojima-san must be so proud of you!" That made Nanako smile. "Are your friends there?"  
"They will be soon, they've just gone to get snacks and things." Yu explained as he and Nanako made small talk with his cousin.  
"How old are you Mina-chan?" Nanako asked as Yu spied his friends in the distance, waving them over.  
"Me? I'm eighteen, I'll turn nineteen in a few months."  
"You're still a high school student?" Yosuke appeared almost out of nowhere, mouth agape at the beautiful young half-Japanese woman before him.  
"Indeed. And you are?"  
"Y-Yosuke Hanumara." He stammered out.  
"He's my friend, and the manager's son, this is his laptop I've been using."  
"Hey move out the way Yosuke-senpai, I want to see her I think I know her!" Rise shoved him out the way with a sharp movement.  
"Risette? You're Risette right?" Mina was astounded. "I heard you quit showbiz."  
"I did, well it's a Hiatus. Inaba is my home town."

"I hear there's quite a few famous people from that area." The older teen rubbed her eyes tiredly before reaching down for something beneath the desk, when she looked up, she was wearing glasses. "I take it you know who I am?"  
"Yup, you're Mina Nurakami, you run a school for singers and musicians and dancers in Tokyo, right? And you're…" She fell quiet for a moment, as if daring to add on the final bit.  
"That's me! I got famous here in America…then a court case happened." She gripped her arm tightly. "Please, leave it at that for now."  
"Quit hogging let us have a go." Kanji declared.

They'd all introduced themselves bar Naoto, who had patiently waited her turn at the back.  
"This is Naoto Shirogane, she's a detective." Yu motioned for Naoto to sit beside him, the others all crowded behind.  
"A…detective? You look a little young."  
"You look a little young yourself." Naoto responded calmly from beneath the rim of her hat.  
"What kind of detective are you?"  
"A private detective, I work for my grampa."  
"You come from a family of detectives, that's pretty cool." The girl was genuinely interested, and something told Naoto she was holding something back, desperate to ask it but being too nervous, she let the point hang in the air.  
"Hey…Yu…speaking of detectives…did you ever find out anything else about my mysterious detective from when I was a kid?"  
"You didn't really give me a lot to go on, you don't even know his name, and a ten hour drive from Tokyo could put you almost anywhere."  
"Since I finally worked up the courage to come back here, I took a trip to the police department. One to see if they could tell me where the hell my parents are these days, and two to see if the American police chief I remembered was still here." She sighed. "…Not only is he no longer here, he passed away recently. I'm never going to find him…" She realised how dark the mood had suddenly gone. "Perhaps you could ask your detective friend there for help. I'll send an email with the stuff I'm ok with you telling her." She began typing it out on her phone beside her.

"I don't think I should burden Naoto-kun with those kinds of things."  
"Naoto…funny…I remember the name Naoto from somewhere, it's pretty rare." The girl remarked, taking another look at the detective prince.  
"Senpai, I'd be willing to investigate it if I can, but if there isn't a lot of information I don't know what I can do."  
"Wait, didn't you say something earlier about your parents? You're not there with them?" Yosuke asked, genuinely concerned.  
"No, my parents moved out here with me when I was eleven, they sent me back to Japan to live with my grandparents, alone, when I was twelve. I haven't seen them since." She seemed oddly happy despite her statement. "Oh, did you find out if anyone had one of those satellites?"  
"Yes, my grandfather has one back at our estate." Naoto nodded. "He has invited my friends here to come and watch this show of yours." The others were all ecstatic.

After she had passed on all the details, the others all went their separate ways, Yosuke, Kanji, Teddie and Rise having to work with their families at their respective stores. Naoto took down some details from an email containing information Yu had given her about the mysterious Japanese detective his cousin was searching for – albeit a weak picking, no name and no mention of the crime he investigated, but she promised to search for what she could and offered to take Nanako to her father at the police station. Chie offered to aid Yukiko at the inn, leaving Yu alone with his cousin again.

"They don't know about your past, do they posh-boy?" She teased.  
"No, I never told them about private school, or the instruments, or the singing."  
"They're going to know on Sunday." Yu smiled, glancing down at his lap.  
"I know." Yu sighed. "Look, don't talk about anything too embarrassing."  
"I won't. I have a question though…have you…ya know…found a girlfriend yet?" She teased.  
"Kinda." Yu smiled bashfully.  
"Oh, which one?"  
"Not telling." He retorted before his voice became serious. "You are safe out there, right?"  
"The men who hurt me are behind bars. Rotting. I am safe. And the people here…life moves on so fast, none of them remember the case…they just recognise my voice and my unusual dress sense for an opera singer." She shook her head gently. "That detective…I wish I remembered his name…we'd have been able to find him years ago…I'd have been brave enough to be _here _years ago." Without realising it, he began to sing to her in English, earning some confused looks from patrons around him, it soothed her.  
"See you Saturday night." She smiled, yawning slightly.  
"Tell dad I miss him. See you Sunday." He closed the webcam. He barely saw her, there in the corner, her cap down.

"Your singing isn't that bad." She shook her head. "Better than I would manage."  
"You barely speak in your female tone, let alone sing in it." He pointed out, curious to search for any disagreeable content on Yosuke's hard drive. "How much of my conversation did you hear?"  
"Just the singing, when that little crowd gathered I got curious."  
"I'll return this to Yosuke, fancy something warm to drink?"  
"Where did you have in mind?" She asked curiously.  
"There's a teahouse in the town your estate borders, right, I'm not working tonight, and uncle Dojima won't be home until late."  
"You are going to go all the way to Shintane for a cup of tea?"  
"Why not?" He shrugged.

The entire journey there on the bus, she was staring at her phone intently, he watched as she inputted the few vague details his cousin had asked him to tell her.  
"There's nothing, Japanese detectives often collaborate on cases abroad where the victim is Japanese." Naoto rubbed her eyes. "I'm sorry senpai, but I need more to go on."  
"I can't tell you." He blurted out.  
"Why not?"  
"It's a promise I made Mina-chan, it was her thing to tell, therefore I would never speak a word of it to anyone unless she instigated it."  
"I understand."

Their tea had been Naoto asking Yu to sing to her before going into her usually introverted self when he began singing love songs. She scowled, walking ahead of him the entire walk back to her estate from the bus stop.  
"Hey I'm sorry, I didn't mean to embarrass you." She wrapped her hands around him, pressing her head into his chest as he felt a click at his hip. "N-Naoto, please put that gun away." He swallowed hard.  
"Wait here, I can get Yakushiji to take you home."

-x-x-

Time had passed slowly, Yu growing more anxious about his cousin. Still, the Sunday came, and in the morning, all the group had been assembled in the shopping district, as Naoto had requested.  
"I can't believe he's making us do this." She sighed, her face in her hands as she heard a familiar sound across the tarmac and tiles of the nearby streets. "I know what my grandfather has done, can you hear that?"

Pulled by five horses, the four white horses in lines of two, behind a familiar dapple gray horse in the unusual outfit that allowed it calm, it was her family's carriage.

"Naoto-sama." The younger stablehand was controlling the horses with two sets of reigns, one fastened to the two white horses on the front row, the second to the wily horse at the front. "Your grandfather is in _that _mood again." He climbed from his place at the seat on the front. "He is insisting on us all extending our finest efforts to you, please expect excellent food and comfortable lodgings for the night." He tipped the hat he had been wearing to his master's grand-daughter, smiling and bashfully waving to the small crowd that had gathered.  
"I regret mentioning to him that Rise really wanted to ride in this thing. He's doing it on purpose." Rise immediately lit up, swinging the door open of the carriage and climbing in.  
"This is so awesome!" She called from inside.

"There is a slight problem." The stablehand turned to Naoto before smiling and allowing her to continue. "The carriage fits six people in, and I can ride on the front next to…oh…Willow is saddled." She had only just noticed that he had wondered off to the horse at the front, removing the harness over the horse's body over its head, adjusting a few pieces on the reigns before adjusting some pieces on the other horses, and discarding the excess pieces to the roof of the carriage before parading the stallion before Yu.  
"Your chariot sir." He bowed, a cheeky grin gracing his features.  
"Whoa, you're going to ride the horse." Chie was impressed.  
"Are you friends with me today?" Yu asked, holding his hand out to the horse, who reared slightly before recognising the boy as who he was.

"Are you sure you're ok?" Naoto called down as the stablehand helped her into her place beside him on the outside, before climbing down and aiding her friends into the side of the carriage, ensuring all their belongings went in afterwards.  
"I'm fine." The horse was growing impatient with waiting, Yu realised.  
"You know the way to the estate right?" She watched as he skilfully commanded the horse to walk up to her. "You'll probably want to go ahead, the horses will occupy all the side streets to the estate."  
"About that, your grandfather said we should take the long route, admire the view." The stablehand pointed out, appearing suddenly beside Yu causing the horse to become restless. Yu pulled gently at the reigns to regain control before reaching for the item held in the older man's hand. "I can direct you through this, enjoy the view." With a gentle nudge the horse moved ahead of the carriage, trotting a few lengths ahead.

They had been travelling for nearly an hour, but all the people in the group, Naoto, her staff and friends alike were amazed at the view, Yu had pulled the horse back alongside the carriage to check with the others how they had been getting on, and to chat with Naoto whilst the path was temporarily wide enough for him to do so.  
"Hey give him a good push the rest of the way, we'll be behind you soon enough, just follow the dirt path, that horse is wild as hell though, so be careful." The stablehand's voice called through the headset, Yu removed it from his ear, thrusting it into his pocket before signalling to Naoto and the stablehand he'd be safe. It didn't take much encouragement for the horse to pick up the pace.  
"Good day to you Narukami-san." Yakushiji bowed to him as he slowed the horse to a walk to turn up the tarmac pathway leading to the estate.  
"Good afternoon Yakushiji." He climbed down from the horse, petting it gently on the nose as the secretary reached in his pocket, offering a whole, shiny apple to the horse. It eagerly snatched it from his hand.

"Forgive my master, he has been most unusual as of late. Perhaps he is finally happy his granddaughter is inviting friends to the estate." Yakushiji patted the horse with a gloved hand. "As you can tell, he asked all the staff, including Kaito - our stablehand, and Hideo, his father and the stablemaster." Yu noticed the sunglasses never left the man's face, much like Naoto's cap. "He also mentioned that Naoto-sama told him to keep quiet about your and her relations, thus, we have set up an extra futon in the room where your male friends will be sleeping."  
"Thank you."  
"Please be warned, my master has really put his staff in line, he worked us to the bone all morning, organising food for your friends and preparing the home cinema and bedrooms. He even gave me the afternoon off, in return for working around the house all morning. And for untangling Naoto from the power cables in the home cinema this morning when she thought she was helping." The man chuckled light-heartedly to himself. "I digress, I hope your evening will be satisfactory."

"He said satisfactory right?" Kanji asked, stuffing yet more food into his already full mouth.  
"This. Is. Awesome!" Chie declared, stuffing her third plate of steak down her throat.


	15. The Fountain Incident

"You're so modest about your family wealth Naoto-kun." Yukiko commented, taking in the cinema room. "I've never been to a place that had its own cinema before."  
"I've never been to a place where there is an outdoor hot spring before" Naoto responded calmly, nodding to Yakushiji who smiled as he allowed all her friends into the room. He watched as they all took their places, Naoto playing with the remote to set up the channel which sprang to life on a late night chat show in which his cousin was to appear first, do an interview then sing. He recognised some of the other guests, a small band famous for singing amusing little love songs, a comedic musician, some comedians he vaguely recognised.

The show had yet to start, so Yakushiji set to the task of setting Japanese subtitles to the channel.  
"Yakushiji my old friend, have I not told you to finish working already." Her grandfather's voice came through the door, before the older man appeared, a clinking sound signifying his stop. All eyes turned to him, he bowed his head slightly and smiled in response before offering one of the two glasses in his hands to Yakushiji, the sound of ice clinking against the side of the fine glass echoing across the room.  
"May we join you Naoto-chan, I feel reminiscent of my time in America, I remember this show."  
"Of course grampa, this _is _your house after all." The elder Shirogane smiled and nodded, taking his place in the back of the room, Yakushiji joining him at his side.

Sure enough, she appeared and there was a single sound in the back of the cinema, ice slamming against a glass, a very slight choking sound before an alarmed shuffle and then silence.  
"Are you ok grampa?" Naoto asked, turning around in her seat, balancing on her knees on the chair.  
"Quite ok, just enjoy the show." Yu glanced over his shoulder, noticing that Naoto's grandfather was even more stoic than she managed, better at hiding his emotions.

"Aw man your cousin is so cute!" Yosuke bubbled as the light was shed on her once more, a white scarf knotted lightly against her neck, a high necked black t-shirt advertising a band that was appearing later in the day, black skinny jeans and converse – not the normal attire for an operatic soprano, but her music was a rarity in the world. She humiliated Yu, revealing a video of him and her singing the Phantom of the Opera from the culture festival the year previous.  
"Your uniform, isn't that the uniform of a posh private school in Tokyo?" Naoto's eyes were alert, her detective self suddenly intrigued.  
"Indeed, me and her were sent there using funding from our grandparent's estate, they died a few years ago now - the money for my education this year was deferred into Dojima's bank account, to help fund my stay here."  
"Whoa, you're so rich sensei!"  
"No, my family are, I'm broke."

The back of the room had grown strangely silent, the sound of her grandfather and Yakushiji was so silent it could be perceived the elder and his younger secretary had died. Mina, on the TV continued on regardless, saying hi to the group, watching in Japan, before the mood in the interview went dark – referring to the case she was involved in.  
"Your cousin, her name is Mina Gileson, is it not?" Yu's eyes went wide and the whole group twisted on their chairs at the sound of the voice of the older detective.  
"How would you know that? She uses her Japanese name around the world now." Yu was balancing on his chair, a look of shock and disdain on his eyes, Naoto felt a wave of confusion passing over her as she glanced between her boyfriend and her grandfather.  
"The detective she refers to…I think it's me." He glanced up from his glass, unfaltering eyes meeting Yu's. "She was twelve, she couldn't say my name. So she referred to me simply as 'detective'"  
"You're….oh god…" Yu felt his breath catch in his throat. "P-prove it, she said that you would know what to say about the case that only you would know."  
"Her name is Mina Gileson, aged twelve, her parents took her to New York to audition in a talent contest, she had a pure voice that was beyond clarity, thus she passed and was flown to Los Angeles for the next stage of the auditions. I remember listening to a video of her audition on the flight out to Los Angeles, before meeting her. Six boys, aged sixteen to eighteen were convicted of…" He closed his eyes, a heavy sigh leaving his lips.  
"You don't have to say what happened to her." Yu was glancing to Naoto, whose eyes showed worry for her grandfather.

"The scarf around her neck, the high necked t-shirt and the heavy bracelet on her left wrist hide scars where they choked her and restrained her with force." For a brief moment he saw a flash of pain on the elder detectives face. "Whilst it may be true that a detective harbours no special emotions to a case; that case stuck in my head from the moment I began working on it. Simply because, this girl was not much older than Naoto, and her parents were so irresponsible as to leave her alone that day." They all fell silent as his cousin took the stage sang a lengthy operatic song, played by guitars rather than traditional instruments. Excusing himself, Yakushiji went to fetch something for his friend at his side.

-x-x-

The video was grainy, the group were silent as they watched. Her grandfather had explained that at the time, due to the case, they were required to record all interviews with the young girl, both video and audio. She was sat alone in the room, purple hair far shorter, tied back in a ponytail, her outfit covered almost all her body, from the top of the shirt, scars could be seen around her neck. A door swung open and a heavyset detective, graying, but not as much as he was in the modern day came in, carrying multiple bags, a younger American detective placed several racks of cups on the desk, where the elder detective placed the bags before taking his place before the girl.

"You are Mina Gileson, yes?" The man began, placing his hands on the desk before him, watching the teen girl curiously, she responded only with a slight nod. "My name is Tomatsu Shirogane."  
"Are you a detective?" She squeaked nervously.  
"Indeed I am, I know you are Japanese by descent, but you have an excellent proficiency for English, which language do you prefer to speak?"  
"My native tongue, it feels so strange after being here in America for so long." The girl was glancing at her wrist under the desk. "Shir-o-gami"  
"Shirogane" The man repeated his name. "You can call me just 'detective' should you prefer."  
"My grasp of Japanese is difficult after being here."  
"I am a friend of the police chief here; he mentioned you may be hungry." The girl's eyes passed over all the food offerings, which he had been slowly unpacking as he spoke. "I did not know what you ate, and I requested they gather a variety of food and drinks."  
"Is there Japanese food?" The girl asked, bright green eyes glancing up at the camera before returning to the detective.  
"Indeed." He offered her several boxes of familiar food. She snatched the chopsticks from the top of a bento box, ripping the lid off and immediately beginning to eat. "They said you were refusing to eat, it seems you just required a particular kind of food." The girl nodded in response. "To drink?"  
"Do you have one of those big caffeine drinks they sell in this country?"  
"Your parents let you drink those?" She nodded, he only sighed, placing a large cup in front of her that belonged to the younger detective who had assisted him with carrying the items in. "I believe this is what you require, I will compensate the young man later."

She polished off all the sushi from the box and took a long drink from the large paper cup that sat neatly on her lap.  
"Can you get the detectives to give me a cushion? I want to sit like I would back home." He nodded, gesturing to the detectives behind a set of blinds to do as she asked.

She kept his distance from him, legs crossed on her cushion; he sat with his back against the couch on the opposite side of a low metal table.  
"You're kinda scary looking." The girl smiled up at him. "But you seem nicer than the other detectives."  
"I'm glad you think so. They told me you are nervous when the male detectives wave their hands around, are you ok with me taking notes?" She nodded again. "They have to record this conversation."  
"I know." She nodded. "You're here about what those boys did to me, aren't you?" She was pulling at the hem of her sleeve on the long sleeved shirt, nervous and on the verge of crying already.  
"I am." He nodded.  
"Will you yell at me like my parents, or the other detectives?" Her voice was a low squeak.  
"Yell at you? No, there is no need to yell at you."  
"So why do the other detectives do it?" She began having an outburst, much like Naoto's tantrum at the shrine. "They don't believe me! I'm just a stupid little Japanese girl to them! And to my parents!" He was still placid, unnerved on the outside by her crying. He reached for the cotton handkerchief in his pocket, holding it out a distance in front of her. After a while, she reached for it, retracting her hands against her body wiping her eyes.  
"Tell me about your family." Her head snapped up at his unusual request, with the aim of distracting her from her crying.  
"I'm here with my mom and my dad, and my little brothers and sister." The girl sniffed, struggling with her sobs. "My dad is an American man, he has family in New York, I thought we were here visiting them."  
"You did not know about the talent show?" She shook her head silently. "How long have you been in America?"  
"I came here just before my twelfth birthday, that was about nine months ago." She smiled. "Before that, I lived in Shibuya in Tokyo, with my grandparents and my family in a big house!"  
"I see, you seem happier talking about that." He was writing the entire time they were speaking. "Do you miss Tokyo?"  
"Uh-huh, people there don't do what those boys did to me." The detective shook his head in response.  
"Unfortunately it still happens, but I have to say, the police in Tokyo would have handled the case, and your own safety with more dignity than you have been granted here." There was a loud thud outside, one of the American detectives punching the wall at the Japanese man's comment. "Do you have any other family?"

"Uh-huh, I have an uncle, and a younger cousin. He's really cool and really clever!" Yu smiled to himself as they watched the video, despite the dark subject matter. "Do you have a family mister detective?"  
"I do."  
"Children?"  
"I had a daughter."  
"Had?" The girl asked, confusion on her face.  
"She died, along with her husband in a car crash. She had a daughter, I look after her now." The girl looked to the floor but looked up suddenly.  
"I'm sorry mister detective, about your daughter. How old is your granddaughter?"  
"She is ten." The man replied.  
"Is she here with you?"  
"No, she is back in my hometown, being cared for by a friend." The smile and his pride about Naoto was obvious in his smile.  
"Mr Detective…if I tell you what happened…will you believe me?" The girl asked pleadingly.  
"Of course, that is my job after all." Before he registered what happened, the girl sprang forward, sliding around the desk, her arms around his neck, face buried into his shoulder crying. He could be seen on the video closing his eyes and sighing heavily, no doubt steadying his emotions like his granddaughter so often did. He placed a hand on her back gently before allowing her to finish crying.

The screen faded to black, the recording stopped.  
"My friend forwarded this video to me along with a letter written by the girl, in the letter she explained she had moved back to Tokyo to live with her grandparents, and was recovering well." The man finished the glass of liquor he was drinking, handing it to Yakushiji. "The case always stuck in my head, she was just a little girl. Not much older than Naoto, her innocence stolen by those men."  
"Y-you have to speak to her, please." Yu pleaded, noticing she had long since gone off stage and was most likely waiting to webcam chat with her younger cousin.  
"I…" The man seemed conflicted. "Yes." He nodded, Naoto needed no prompt to get her laptop.

-x-x-

"It…it really is you." She was smiling despite tears falling from her eyes.  
"Are you well? You have most certainly grown to be a fine young woman." The girl nodded quickly.  
"Mr Detective…can I ask your name again?"  
"Shirogane, Detective Tomatsu Shirogane." The man explained.  
"S-shirogane?" Her eyes went wide. "You aren't related to the Naoto girl are you?"  
"He is my grandfather." The blue haired teen appeared behind him. The girl could be seen glancing between Yu, the elder Shirogane and his young granddaughter standing behind them. "It was by chance he's here…he was watching you sing with us when he recognised you."

"I spent years trying to find you, but I couldn't remember your name. My mom and dad didn't help…they weren't happy about the fact I confided in you…not long after, I went back to Tokyo to live with my grandparents. I still haven't spoken to my parents, I've been here in the USA for about a year now."  
"How unfortunate." The man shook his head gently. "Your wounds scarred? That is the purpose of the outfits you wear?"  
"Yes, here." She unclipped her bracelet, holding her wrist up to the camera, a crimson scar circled around the bone, dipping down into a crescent moon shape underneath. "I'm glad to have seen you, I will be returning to Japan soon, I have my own business, well my uncle – Yu's father – runs it, as I've only just turned eighteen."  
"Should you not still be in high school?" The man asked.  
"I am, the school Yu and I attend in Tokyo allows me to complete my studies from here in America, I have to return to Tokyo next month, so I can take my final exams and graduate. Then I'm going to learn how to properly manage my business."  
"Impressive." The man was genuinely impressed, a girl her age with such grand ambitions.  
"It is late, I should be heading to bed soon. Perhaps one day, I'll have the chance to say thank you to you in person." The man nodded in response. "Enjoy your evening, and thank you, Shirogane-san." She bowed her head slightly. "Please, tell my cousin that I look forward to seeing him when he returns to Tokyo, I don't think I have the time to call until then."

-x-x-

Her grandfather had returned to his study, Yu explained to the group throughout the evening that he spent a lot of time with his grandparents when his own parents went off on business abroad. His mother had often disapproved, but his father won the argument. Whilst he still travelled frequently across Japan from a young age, he had been left in the care of foster carers after his grandparent's death, his cousin moving into a dorm and his mother refusing him the same option.

The others began busying themselves, setting up films to watch in the cinema, guided by the dragon, Yu found himself in the garden. She was sat on the edge of the fountain, trousers rolled up, legs in the warm water, a cat curled up on her lap.  
"Is this spot free?" He asked, hitching up the legs of his trousers and joining her. It didn't strike him how deep the water was until it began to saturate the legs of his trousers, Naoto's own trousers soaked.  
"The water here is deep, you could swim in it." The cat paced across her lap and into Yu's own. He carefully petted at the cat, which he recognised to be a Bengal.  
"The dragon was right, perhaps we are more linked by fate than we realised." The cat clawed gently at him, swatting at his loose fitting shirt.  
"Indeed."  
"How come you're alone out here?" He felt his body relax, enjoying the warming sensation against his legs.  
"I was thinking."  
"Sat on the edge of a fountain, looking up at the window to your grandfather's study?" The large window was definitely the one to the study, dark blue drapes blocked out the night sky from the inside.

"Senpai, you don't remember your time in Tokyo, do you?"  
"Not a lot of it, I know of all the things I did there. Like I know I attended private school, I know I learned the cello, I know I spent a lot of time with Mina, I know I used to work in her studio…yet…I don't remember them."  
"A few afternoons ago, I was sat with my grandfather in his study after school, when we were talking, I mentioned it to him. He said that I used to be that way." She placed her hand in the fountain beside her legs, feeling the water soothe her hand. "When my parents were killed, I used to go to therapy, my therapist is in a larger town on the other side of Shintane, twice a week for several years, Yakushiji would drive me to visit him."

"Well, I imagine losing your parents had some negative effects and you and your grandfather both."  
"I went mute, so for a couple of years, my therapist would just ask me yes and no questions. When I was speaking again, the therapist used to ask me about my memories. I used to look at him confused. He came to the conclusion I had convinced myself all those things happened to someone else. Another me."  
"Like your shadow." Yu commented, watching the cat wonder away.  
"Indeed, my memories are all there, I might not remember them but I _know_ they're there. Your dragon called it a bubble, he said there's a bubble with all those thoughts and feelings in there and now my shadow is awakened, even she can not enter the bubble."  
"You're saying I have one of those?"  
"I'm saying you are repressing your memories, all of them, not just the bad ones, from Tokyo." She paused for a moment. "I can not give you a reason as to why, I think you've repressed the original trigger as it were. Maybe your dragon was born from such a memory."

"So you think Kohyru exists in my head so strongly because he's trying to learn about the repressed memories." Yu concluded. "A credible theory detective."  
"Perhaps you should visit a therapist."  
"I think a priest would be better, considering some of the monster personas I have." Naoto smiled to herself, despite his serious tone. "Besides, you and I and our friends would be a therapist's wet dream right now, personas and the like."  
"Despite your crude language, I feel you may be correct Yu-kun."

"Hey Naoto, the water is so deep you can swim right?" He suddenly broke the silence between them.  
"That is what I told you, why?" Without warning he swept her from the edge of fountain, feeling weightless as she was surrounded by water. She felt herself pulled up by her collar, a laughing Yu alongside her, paddling gently to prevent himself going under.  
"W-what did you do that for?" She cried out, throwing her hands down in a tantrum splashing him with a spray of warm water.  
"Lightening the mood."

Deep in his psyche, a single ruby eye opened. The slumbering dragon plumed dark smoke as he felt realization strike.

Suddenly, he understood his purpose.

Sensing his master's happiness, playing along with his love the dragon knew he could re-enter his slumber.

"Hey…senpai, promise you won't forget your time in Inaba." She placed her cap on the edge of the square fountain, clinging to its side to catch her breath, Yu placed a hand on her back, clinging to the edge to help her balance. "I don't want to be another thing you _know _you had."  
"I promise." He waited for a moment. "Besides, you're not something I've _had_, your love is something I will always have, won't I?"  
"You won my heart fair and square, it will always be yours." She coughed up a small amount of clear water, laughing to herself. "Now help me out before someone gets the wrong idea."  
From the decking at the back of the house, the elder Shirogane observed the fiasco at the fountain with tired curiosity. The Bengal cat curled up at his ankle which he knelt down to pet, smoke rising gently from the Cuban cigar in his fingers.

"That boy is indeed a mystery." He glanced down at the cat, raising the cigar to his mouth, breathing in deeply then exhaling the dark smoke forming rings into the still night air. "I only hope there is enough mystery to keep my granddaughter intrigued for the rest of her days." The cat mewed. "Shirogane's do have an awful habit of being stubborn, only letting one person take our heart in all our lives."


	16. The Monsters Make Me Human

Tired eyes looked up at his friend and the mechanical creature on the metal table.  
"You hear that?" His friend took a moment to stop oiling the joint on the creature's leg.  
"Yeah, the Kirijo chick said someone took one of those machines. Least it wasn't an anti-shadow weapon."  
"The fact is though, she thinks one of her family's benefactors could have taken it." He placed the tablet computer on the crate to his left, reaching for the bottle of soda beside it. "She thinks it might have been my father."  
"You've not seen him in a while, why does it matter?" The engineer glanced down at the red light eyes of the creature he was working on which was watching with interest."It's not  
"It's not _me_ I'm worried about, they know the machine isn't in the storage area, Aigis is trying to locate it. But she can not sense a thing, I'm worried it could be used to summon a powerful shadow, and my father would certainly be capable of producing such a monster."

"Caring for innocent people? Pretty rich for a secret government gimp." The engineer chuckled to himself as the beast on the table adjusted to allow him access to another joint on the right leg.  
"Look man, we work for a girl who can summon a persona, we know all this shadow shit and what they're capable of. Then there's shadow activity in Inaba…" His eyes glanced over the black armoured outfit he wore, noting it could be perceived as an armoured gimp suit without the mask. The engineer wacked the joint with the spanner, the beast retracted the leg back as if in pain. A heavy silence filled the room, only the clicking of joints as he tightened them, the computer running programming and the beast's armour being replaced filling the room.  
"Ok, NHX18, all done." The beast flicked its tail, waving its leg slightly to check the joint's positioning as the cables were removed from the hatch behind the head plate.  
"It's Hal, sir." It growled. "Your fellows at the Kirijo institute on the island made the effort to grant me a more human name when they granted me free will."  
"I never worked for them, my father did."

-x-x-

God how she ached, it turned out that skiing was far harder than she could have believed when she had been reading online. Yu and Kanji had been kind enough to demonstrate how to ski, it struck her fairly early on that she was far too embarrassed by the fact she struggled. Once again, Yu took himself to the top of the shallow slope, demonstrating to her once again how to slowly guide herself down.  
"Hey Senpai, if you're from the city, how do you know how to ski?" Rise asked, picking it up far faster than Naoto, who yet again tumbled down onto Kanji, who was being oddly patient with her today.  
"Indoor ski centres are common back home; since most people are so busy with their jobs in the city that they don't get chance to take vacations. Besides, I've had a few placements and homes in the mountains." Rise managed to get down to the bottom with ease this time, Naoto only managing to get part way down before stumbling again.

It had been that way all day, although Naoto had found herself more able to concentrate without her mind wondering to places it shouldn't with the silverette's presence she couldn't deny the slight pang of jealousy she felt when Rise had taken Yu up to the next section of the slope, keen to demonstrate her new skills to him.

_She really is desperate…_

She wondered where such a thought had come from, but was soon able to focus and settle her mind when she felt a familiar warm haze in the back of her head, and a physical tingling as if the dragon was coiled around her waist. She was suddenly able to move a few inches before falling, as if the dragon was guiding her with its tail. She panicked when she heard the dragon snarl and Yukiko and Teddie rush by in what she wasn't even sure was skiing.

-x-x-

_Is he really scared of ghost stories?  
_"_Indeed he is." _The dragon growled gently as she closed her eyes and rubbed the lids gently.  
"_Hehe, he's not so perfect, good thing too…cause we're kinda broken as well." _The dragon nuzzled her shadow gently, eliciting a childish giggle. _"It's nice that you got rid of the other me Mr. Dragon." _Naoto felt herself physically smile in response to the giggling of her shadow.

"You ok Naoto?" Yu nudged her gently in her side as he readied himself to begin his own ghost story. She smiled gently at him, waiting for him to begin. He settled back into the seat beside her and began telling his tale.

The lights went out, she freaked out, immediately clutching for the thing closest to her, which happened to be her boyfriend who gently petted her head.  
"_He was just describing the Velvet Room and its resident Igor" _the dragon soothed her as she went into a bracing position, shivering. Yu switched the lights and her eyes immediately shot to the bear eating the cakes Yakushiji had made her, and drinking her tea. Never before had she considered killing the stupid creature, but those were _hers_. Just like Yu was _hers_. She shook her head back to the task at hand as she reminded the bear he wasn't human and didn't have human rights. She didn't notice the pale hand reaching into her cake tin, picking out a brownie and eating it with quiet amusement watching what was going on, a smirk on his lips between chews.  
"B-but sensei is eating your snacks!" Several sets of eyes shot to Yu, the steely blue set looking slightly more hateful and shocked than the rest. He calmly finished the last bite, as if the entire group wasn't staring at him, washing it down with the rest of her tea, gently placing the tea cup back on the table with a smile.  
"Teddie, I have human rights." He reminded, a victorious smile flashed at his lips for a brief moment before he excused himself, quickly chased out the door of their room and down the hall by a screaming Naoto.

Despite her best attempts, he was far too fast and had far longer legs than hers so managed to escape her, around the corner and she was sure she had seen him shoot down the stairs to the ground floor. By the time she had shot down to the bottom of the stairs he was waiting with a replacement drink, the smell was not that of tea, and tea did not have cream floating on the top, nor did it come in such a large mug.

"I'm sorry." He held out the mug of hot chocolate. "One hot chocolate, marshmallows and whipped cream included." She noticed he still had one hand behind his back.  
"What is that behind your back?"  
"Oh this? Cake." He dipped his finger into the cream decorating the top of the cake and wiped it against her cheek. "You've got a bit on your face there." The elevator they were stood beside swung open, he guided her inside before leaning close to her, her nervous anticipation obvious as the mug clattered against the plate it was balanced on before he kissed away the cream.  
"S-senpai!" She cried out before blushing deep. He smiled to himself, taking the mug back from her, offering her the plate of cake in its place, before gesturing that they had reached their floor. She thought about going straight to the room they shared with their friends, but stopped short.

"Something wrong?" He asked, curious.  
"I-it's nothing." She blushed, her hand briefly brushing against his as she passed him to head into the room first.

-x-x-

The boys had taken the room on the left wall, the girls the one of the right, the others in the group had retired to bed early, but even so, the voices of the girl's talking was heard across on the boy's side. The others had all drifted to sleep, Yu sighed in defeat, rising from his futon, grumbling as he did, fishing through the bag at his feet to pull out the contact lens case and his book.

The others had all made fun of him for the sleeping mask, but it was easier in his eyes than showing them what he looked like without the contact. He gingerly removed it from over the good eye, it hanging loosely over the damaged eye as he negotiated by Teddie and Yosuke, who – he was fairly certain at least – were spooning. He opened the door to the room, scooted out as quietly as he could and closed it softly behind him.

"Come on Nao-kun, there has to be _someone _you're interested in. I mean, you're not a robot." Rise's voice cooed through.  
"I fail to see why you're so interested in this." Naoto was nervous; he could tell that without looking at her. He tried to focus back on his book, which he was regarding with little interest.  
"Hey Naoto-kun, where did that dragon teddy come from?" He felt a spark in his head. _Dragon?  
_"This? It was from senpai for Christmas."  
"That's not fair, you got one with his persona too, all we got were little knitted versions of our personas." He could almost sense Rise's pout from behind the door.  
"Well his dragon did stop my shadow choking me to death and trying to restrain me to the table." She responded calmly.  
"It's really well made." Chie pointed out. "And kinda big, like it's tied around your waist and the head is still on your shoulder."  
"Back to the point, answer us Naoto-kun." Rise yelled with a new vigor.

He regarded his book with a new interest, yet another detective novel, one that he had seen on Naoto's desk last time he visited her at the estate. This novel had something to do with a string of murders that seemed to take place as religious sacrifices, it was interesting, but more grim than a book he would normally read. He settled down to read in more comfort, head against the arm of the sofa, body tilted to one side, one leg dangling off the edge.

"Comfortable?" She was stood beside him, dragon toy still tied around her waist, the head dangling over her shoulder, her bindings still tightly fastened around her chest.  
"Hm?" He hadn't registered the sounds around him going quiet, or how much of the story he had read or her appearance.  
"The girls fell asleep, so I was going to get a drink." She gestured to the sink. "How come you're not in bed?"  
"Wasn't tired, oh and Teddie and Yosuke are spooning for some reason, so I didn't want to be in there if they woke up and freaked out." He negotiated up the sofa into a sitting position, the sleeping mask, now around his neck was lifted gently over his head and his book placed on the table, she returned carrying two glasses of water, groaning slightly as she leaned down to place them on the table. "Your legs are hurting." It was a statement of fact rather than a question.

"It's fine." She scowled as she tried to stretch her legs back into a straight position, only to lose her footing and feel as he caught her before she fell. "Thanks." She mumbled shyly.  
"If we keep shush they won't hear us." He pulled her back and onto the sofa. "You sure you're ok?" She was rubbing her legs gently, the muscles were knotted along all of her calf on both legs.  
"My muscles are so knotted." She whimpered silently.  
"Maybe I can help?" He offered.  
"How?"  
"Well come with me, we'll see if we can get some pain meds from the lobby of the lodge, ok?" He rose from the sofa with grace, checking the lens was in place in his left eye before offering his hand to her.  
"Senpai we're still in pyjamas." She pointed out.  
"Hm? Well odds are some of the other teens are down in that party in the bar, most likely dressed worse than us." He noticed her blue longcoat hanging from the coat hook by the door. "If you stick your coat on, and I put my fleece on, we won't look that out of place." She took his hand and he gently pulled her to her feet, steadying her as she struggled.

He wrote a note telling the others that Yosuke and Teddie were spooning in the boy's room, should the girls wake up and wonder where Naoto had gone, they would soon lose interest in the location of the pint sized detective and their silver haired leader. He closed the door tight behind them, watching as she leaned against the wall, in clear pain, wincing slightly as she shifted. He locked the door before offering his hand to her; she was hesitant to take it.

"Nobody in our friendship group can see us now." He assured, grasping at her hand and making her blush, which was made deeper when he pulled her against him, trying to let her lean some weight on him.

The bar was bustling with teens and young adults getting slowly drunk on the atmosphere and snuck in liquor. He left her on one of the red velvet sofas outside the bar as he explored the small shop to the left of the reception, finding only a pain relief cream and a macca leaf.

"_He'll find something." _The dragon was sleepy, awakening from its slumber in her psyche only to tell her that and drift deeper into sleep. She was glancing nervously at her surroundings, trying to find somewhere quiet and away from the main lobby.

"The guy who sold me this stuff said there's a small library around the corner, nobody should be in there, nobody ever is." He shrugged. "I'd rather people didn't think we were going to do something inappropriate in the lobby." She couldn't help but glance down at an unusual mark on the sheep skin rug she had noticed when they arrived before struggling up and following after him.

It was dark in there, and it was obvious from the smell of slightly damp pages and the slight layer of dust on the shelving that it was a place not visited often. There was a small brown sofa pressed against the back wall, the two walls either side decorated with leather bound books. She took a seat on the sofa and flicked on the lamp, sneezing as a layer of dust wafted from it.  
"Ah, I like places like this. Often they have hidden treasures within the shelves." She was glancing round the room as Yu seemed to take notice of some of the older books before placing the bag of items on the floor before her.  
"Roll up your trouser legs."  
"H-huh?" She blushed deep.  
"Well, it's either that or take them off."  
"N-no!" She was aghast at his suggestion, noticing he said it with his usual calm expression.  
"Alright, calm down I didn't mean it." He leaned over her and kissed her forehead gently. "I can't help you unless you let me see your legs."

She never wanted to admit that despite her initial recoil when he touched her bare legs, she quite enjoyed the cooling sensation as he rubbed the macca leaf against her legs, the pain disappearing awash an unusual tingling sensation. He moved from being knelt before her and joined her on the sofa, gesturing to his lap.  
"Legs up." He smiled. She willingly agreed, murmuring something incomprehensible as he gently rubbed the cream into her legs in small circles. He pushed down harder with each rub and could feel her muscles try to fight him back, she winced slightly when he pressed in specific spots but for the most part allowed her back to sink further down into the sofa and her further against his lap.

"You're something else." She murmured in delight. "With the exception of being afraid of climbing trees and being scared of silly fictional stories, I don't think there's anything you've tried that you've got wrong."  
"Not true. I can't play the piano, or…"  
"You really aren't as perfect as you come across." She smirked, flexing her legs freely for the first time since they got off the slopes. "Hm…Yu…could you get me a book from the top shelf there? Second from the left." He complied, straining to reach it but managing to pull it down, coughing as he wiped the dust from the cover. When he turned to her, she was sat back up, stretching her back.

"This is a rare book, some old detective novel." She explained. "It was originally written in Swedish, my grampa has a copy in his library, although a much older edition and in considerably worse condition." She opened the book, noticing it had never been opened before, the pages still a perfect white, the spine not bent anywhere. Yu smiled and joined her on the old sofa again, feeling at ease in the slightly dark room, almost like it was a different world to the rest of the lodge.

In a bold action on her behalf, she clambered into his lap, nuzzling against his neck as he held the book out for her, reading it at a slightly slower pace than herself.  
"You're being a lot more…affectionate than normal." He pointed out as they reached the end of page 21 of the book. She twisted in his lap, her face buried deep into his neck as she lost interest in the book.  
"I wish I wasn't so shy." She whispered gently.  
"That's ok, it's kinda cool having a secret girlfriend." One arm snaked itself across her back, adjusting her so she was more comfortable. "Does this have something to do with today?"  
"Honestly?" She pulled away from his neck, wrapping an arm across his shoulders and meeting his gaze, her eyes flicking back down as soon as they did. "I felt jealous seeing Rise with you."  
"You're human Naoto, it's normal." He pulled her, her arms curling around his neck, adjusting herself to not damage her still fragile legs further.  
"The dragon likes to tell me that." She smiled. "My shadow's started copying him." Yu changed the arm that was pressed against her back, moving his wrist so he could see the time on the watch.  
"It's not even eleven pm yet, but we should return to the room." She murmured a protest which was soon gone as he placed the book in her lap and moved to lift her into his arms. "You're getting tired."  
"I am not!" She grumbled, pushing her hand gently into his shoulder in mock protest.

He placed her down as soon as they got out the elevator at their floor. He began to walk ahead of her, as they had done earlier that day only to feel a pair of slender arms at his waist, the bound up body of his girlfriend pressing into his back, her grip tightening as her hat was knocked from her head and she nuzzled into him deeper. He gently wriggled in her grip to turn to face her, without her shoes on; the top of her forehead was pressed into his shoulder blade, her face against his chest.  
"Something wrong?" He chuckled to himself as he petted her head before letting his hand fall into her blue locks, gently using it to guide her head away from his chest. He gently lowered himself down to her level, balancing on one knee before placing a kiss to her forehead.  
"It's normal to be jealous right?" She leaned up to meet his lips before he pulled too far away.  
"Of course. And you have nothing to worry about either, Narukami here is asexual as far as all other people are concerned, only you know my secret." He winked.  
"W-what?" She was trying to understand the statement when she felt a new voice deep inside her, it wasn't the rumble of the dragon, nor the cooing of her childish shadow, or the long since dead two-faced spiteful side of her shadow self, it was something she recognised as her own voice, her own clear voice.

Without warning she listened to its call, wrapping her arms tight around her partner's neck, pulling him into a deeper kiss. She felt her body push forward against him, causing him to land on his backside, her climbing into his lap. By instinct he adjusted his weight so he could lean on one hand, the other holding her hair, his voice offering a comforting murmur to ensure her she was doing something right. They stayed like that for a short while until the elevator warned of another person entering that floor, she quickly climbed from his lap, blush darkening by the moment.  
"You really are being more affectionate." He rose from his position, placing a hand on her shoulder reassuringly. "Now, we really need to be returning." He scooped her hat from the floor and pressed a kiss to her head before placing it gently on her head. She reached for his hand and only let it go when they reached the still-locked door of the room.

"_That my dear, is the inner voice that belongs to you and only you. Your shadow is still young, she does not understand the concept of love for anything other than family. That voice is the one your shadow will one day inherit, the one that tells you your feelings about him, the more adult and hard to understand feelings are true. I am here always too…" _She glanced up to meet Yu's gaze, clearly he knew the dragon was whispering to her.

"I didn't hear what he said, but it must have been something to reassure you. I wish I could see what went on in that brain of yours sometimes." He felt the door click in response to the key.  
"Hm? You should ask your dragon sometimes."  
"Why? I can ask you myself." He gestured ahead of himself, passing her the book they looted from the library as she walked ahead.

In that room, she wasn't Naoto Shirogane – the girlfriend of Yu Nurakami, she was Naoto Shirogane – the cross-dressing secret love of Yu Nurakami. She had a mystical dragon and a shadowy child in the back of her mind whispering to her that all the new feelings she had were more human than she ever thought she could be.

_Strange that monsters are making me more human…more normal._


	17. Nanako's Nightmares

A/N: Sorry, I was planning on posting this sooner...buuuuuut I got offered an opportunity to write for Games Workshop, so spent about three weeks producing writing samples for them! Alas, enjoy, read and review!

* * *

They were talking in hushed whispers again, quietly shedding the outer clothes they were wearing, Yu sliding the tube containing the remainder of the ointment into the pocket of the fleece he had been wearing. It struck them that nobody had stirred in their absence, the dragon teddy was still lying on the table, the note about Teddie and Yosuke hugging untouched. Naoto had already taken her usual position when reading, leaning against the arm of the sofa, legs tucked underneath herself, one arm propping her up against the arm of the chair, the other laying in front of her, the old novel clasped gently in her hand. She couldn't help but notice Yu carefully trying to negotiate the skis and bags off the other sofa.  
"Senpai, if you're not careful you'll wake the others." She scolded under her breath as she heard the clatter of one set of skis against another. Suddenly realising what he was trying to do, she sighed. "Just lay on this sofa with me, it is a sofa designed for four and I am far smaller than you, there's plenty of room."  
"Hm?" He let the ski he was pulling drop back down onto the sofa with a soft thud, a hollow clatter filling the room. "Well I figured people might see us lying together, get the wrong idea…well actually the right one." He was rubbing his neck gently like he did when he was nervous.  
"Shut up and read." She grumbled as he kissed her forehead and occupied the rest of the sofa, lying flat on his back feet touching hers, book held above his face.

He'd fallen asleep before her, not long after the clock had struck 12.15. With him sleeping the way he was she was so unbelievably tempted to crawl into the position that gave her more comfort than anything else he did. She glanced at both doors, aware that in a few hours not a single person had stirred.

_One cuddle won't hurt…_

He was laying on the edge of the sofa, his left arm against the floor, right arm tucked behind his head against the arm of the sofa, the book he had been reading discarded behind it. She knew she could more than easily wiggle into the space between him and the back of the sofa and make herself cosy for a short while. She took one last glance at both the bedroom doors, placing her book down on the floor beside her, adjusting her legs around that of the long legged boy asleep beside her to feel a dull aching. She adjusted herself around him, carefully negotiating herself so she could slide into the gap between him and the back, sweeping an arm across his chest and stretching her legs to give her muscles a rest.

She didn't mean to linger there, but his soft murmur compelled her to stay, just for five minutes. She pushed deeper into his chest, causing him to stir again, twisting to face her, arm wrapped around her. _He must be hanging off the edge of the sofa almost, but…he seems so comfortable…_

"_Is that how you rationalise your own feelings?" _The dragon was smirking as she closed her eyes. _"You can't deny you are comfortable as well."  
_She could feel as he stirred once more, bringing his right arm down to hook over her body, which she moulded to, her head resting on his shoulder.

-x-x-

Kanji had never been one to sleep early, but a day of over-exertion, trying to teach Naoto to ski, dodging Yukiko and Teddie and Rise's overbearing personality – had left him drained. When he groaned awake, muscles aching and throat dry he forced himself to shake back to reality. His eyes scanned the room, skipping over the empty futon to notice the closeness of Yosuke and Teddie.  
"The hell?" He had to restrain his voice, not wanting to wake anyone. "The fuck are those two doin' senpai? S-senpai?" His eyes fell on the empty futon. "F-fuck, I'll just get a drink."

He was relieved to hear no clucking from the girls across the hall, he ran the tap in the kitchen, picking a washed glass from the pair on the counter, not thinking much of the fact someone else had been up to get a drink on the night. He finished his drink, placing the glass on the other side of the sink and was almost at the door when he heard a soft mumbling.  
"Senpai…Yu…that tickles." Followed by a shuffling.  
"Naoto-kun?" Kanji was nervous to approach the sofa where he was sure the sound came from.

His face burned with what he was seeing, Naoto snuggled into their senpai, who was barely on the sofa.  
"The fuck?" Even though he whispered, her eyes shot open, her immediate reaction was to scoot back, kicking Yu with enough force for him to roll off the sofa and hit the floor with a force to wake him.  
"Nngh…ow." Yu's eyes shot open to be met with Kanji looking over him. Naoto squeaked in response, glancing nervously at the doors, hoping the sound of Yu hitting the floor didn't wake anyone else.  
"I'm sorry senpai." She whimpered quietly.  
"Here." Kanji helped pull Yu to his feet. "So uh…y-you two…"  
"Please don't tell anyone." Naoto squeaked out, covering her face to hide her blush.  
"Tell em what?" Kanji smiled. "I'm happy for ya senpai, you too Naoto."

She had nervously explained why they were keeping quiet about their relationship, and apologising to Kanji for keeping it hidden.  
"Na, it's kinda cute. You're not really the cutesy type, but somehow it works." Kanji smiled at her. " 'Sides he understands all the smart stuff you say."

-x-x-

She hadn't gone back to sleeping next to him despite the fact they hadn't been disturbed all night after, Kanji had promised to keep himself to himself, explaining he knew Yu was a good match for her, better than anyone else in the group at least. She thanked him, blushing and bowing her head slightly. Kanji returned to the boys' room, after pointing out Teddie was spooning Yosuke and the three of them smiling between them at the new trust between them.

The following day, when Naoto had suggested they all had a chance to spend time with him she was listening to that new inner voice, along with the dragon, although she was certain they both had a different reasoning as to why they suggested it. Whilst Rise was still trying to get to be the centre of attention, Kanji and Yu had at least managed to get Naoto to ski, albeit slowly for a few feet. Those two and Rise followed after her and Yu managed to stop her falling onto herself.  
"Spread your legs further." Kanji told her, she tried to follow his instruction but felt her legs tiring again. When Teddie and Yukiko shot beside her at high speed she felt herself tumble and suddenly her anxiety began to make her shiver.  
"I think I'll walk." She fell down onto the snow with a thump, shivering slightly.  
"You're anxious again?" Yu and Kanji helped pull her off to the side. "Here let us help." They helped unclipped the skis from her feet and help her up, her anxiety now so bad she was clutching at herself.  
"I'll take Rise further up and help her. You should walk Naoto back down senpai, you got to spend time with all of us today. You aren't looking too healthy yourself." Kanji was smiling and turning back to Rise. Yu removed his own skis, slinging them over one shoulder as Naoto began to traverse the hill after him.  
"How about this evening, me and you come out here when it's quieter and I'll see if we can't get you skiing properly."  
"T-that wouldn't be necessary!" She shook her head. "But…it would be nice…"

-x-x-

She was still looking scornful at the bear and Yosuke for their implications she wanted to prove herself to the others by being intimate with Yu in front of them. Three people were waiting for the collection of the teens in the car park, Yosuke's parents were taking him and Teddie, and Rise had arranged for a private vehicle to take Kanji, herself, Chie and Yukiko back to town, the final car had Yakushiji leaning against the bonnet.  
"Naoto-sama, how are you today?" He asked as she glared at the bear and climbed into the car wordlessly, even then the bear could sense she was still glaring from behind the tinted windows. "Did something happen?" He glanced between Yu and the other members of the group then back to the car door, which she slammed shut with enough force to pull it from the hinges.  
"How are you getting home partner? You can hitch a lift with us."  
"I would be equally happy to return you to the Dojima residence." Yakushiji offered.  
"No offence Yosuke, but maybe I'll take Yakushiji-san's offer." His eyes, face and voice were calm, so calm it frightened them.

"Are you going to say something Naoto-sama?" He had returned Yu to his home, noticing Naoto was as withdrawn as she was prior to coming back to Inaba. "Something's on your mind?"  
"Nothing important." She mumbled from beneath the rim of her hat.  
"Naoto, please do not lie. I have been around you all your life, nothing you say and do surprises me anymore. So please, tell me."  
"I'll tell you if you tell me what you did before you came to work with my grandfather." She grumbled.  
"Then I will not press the matter further, I am bound by my contract to your grandfather, part of that contract states I was not to reveal the person I was before I came into service of your family. I follow my master's orders; they were not to reveal my past to your mother, her husband or any of their future successors."  
"Then what is on my mind will not pass my lips." There was a silence in the car as he considered his options, he was about to speak to the teenaged detective before she spoke up. "Can you make chocolate?"  
"Chocolate? Most certainly. Why do you ask?"  
"It's Valentine's Day tomorrow." She said quietly.  
"For Narukami-san?"  
"Some for my friends too, I guess. You, your lovely daughter and grampa too."  
"I will show you before your grandfather and I leave tonight."

-x-x-

The aroma of chocolate was mingled with a new and more unfamiliar scent as she nuzzled closer into Yu even more, his arms getting tighter round her, their skin still tingling from all the new sensations. Her hands were still tangled in the silver hair as she leaned over him to have a more tender kiss than the heated kisses they'd shared just moments earlier.  
"Can I stay with you? It seems inappropriate for lovers to not share a bed after…" She blushed, her head going back into his neck. "Nanako is alone right? You need to look after her."  
"Yeah, I'm sorry, I'd rather stay here." He was drawing patterns on her back. "I have to meet Nanako at her friend's at six thirty."  
"That's ok." She slid down to get into a better position to feel his warmth as he reached to spoon her. "My mind is strangely quiet, nothing from the dragon or shadow Naoto." She felt her body relax.  
"He's looking after her, I'm sure. I feel him sleeping."  
"She's asleep with him I think. I sense her lying in his coils, warmed by his smoke." She reminded herself that such a bold and grown up move wouldn't have been understood by her child self, the dragon had most likely kept her from understanding and given both her and its master peace. She let her eyes close, feeling as he steadied his breathing too, the watches would wake them in an hour.

"I'll go meet Nanako at her friend's, don't take too long ok?" He instinctively pulled her closer as she sleepily wrapped her arms around his neck. He leaned back lightly against her, feeling the base of his back hit her kneecaps. "I feel awful leaving you alone to clean up, are you sure you'll be-"  
"I'll be fine Yu" she yawned lightly before gliding her hands down to meet where the remaining buttons of his shirt hadn't been closed, carefully negotiating the buttons into their correct positions. He pulled her arms gently, feeling her breasts press into his back and head against his own.  
"I didn't hurt you too bad did I?"  
"No, I'm fine." Unruly blue hair tickled Yu's neck and he felt himself lean gently against her. "The dragon, as lovely as he is, doesn't make a good substitute for you." She pushed against him a little harder and undid herself from his grasp. "I'll see you tonight." Yu gave her one last kiss, lingering a little longer than he should have before picking his satchel off the floor.

-x-x-

"Nanako! Your cousin is here!" The housewife at the door yelled into the living room of her home. "Please come in Narukami-san."  
"Thank you, I'm sorry I'm late, I was visiting a friend and had to drop my scooter off at home before running all the way across the shopping district and floodplains to get here."  
"Big bro!" Nanako rushed out to meet him, slamming into him full force. "You smell different, like perfume." Sure enough, his shirt smelt of the unusual homemade cologne Naoto wore. "Did big sis bring you chocolates?" She asked wide-eyed.  
"Yes, she made you some too, she's bringing them over later, she just has some work she needed to get done first."  
"Big sis?" The woman was curious.  
"My girlfriend, Nanako-chan likes to call her big sis." He felt as Nanako took his hand and began pulling him towards the living room where a group of her friends were playing. "Where are we going?"  
"Can big bro play with us a little?"  
"Of course dear, the other's families haven't come to fetch them."

He recognised a few of her friends, he was certain one was named Miku, a few of the other girls had visited the house a few times. Nanako was a popular kid, as shown by all her friends sat around the large table in the centre, each with a teddy bear sat next to them.  
"This is my big bro, can he play with us a while?" The friend whose mother hosted him beamed and nodded enthusiastically. Yu felt himself pushed down onto a free cushion, a plastic tea cup placed in front of him, just like the one before Nanako and her Teddie toy.

After half an hour, she left her friend's at the promise of a piggyback ride the entire journey home. He kept to his promise as soon as they left the house, sitting her on the wall before kneeling before her and wrapping her arms around his neck. She was more than happy to wrap her legs around the top of his hips, which he supported with one hand against her thigh.  
"You're so strong big bro." She cooed as he held the Teddie toy in his free hand and began to make his way towards the shopping district.  
"Thank you." Naoto thanked the bus driver as it rolled to a stop, she snatched the bag up from the seat beside her and began crossing the shopping district.  
"Naoto-kun!" She heard a voice pierce the peaceful atmosphere as she passed Marukyu Tofu. The rest of the investigation team bounded out the door. "Are you going somewhere?"  
"Yes."  
"Hm…Nao-chan…you smell different." Teddie mused. "You smell like sensei."  
"W-what?" She blushed bright, hiding it under her cap. "O-oh of course, I was returning his jacket, he left it at the estate, that was why I invited him over earlier."  
"Naoto-kun!" The girl's voice broke across the shopping district.

"Ow ow Nanako, don't fidget." Yu was laughing softly as he joined the rest of the group. "Oh Naoto, my fleece, thank you. Oh and thank you for the tea at the estate earlier, it was wonderful."  
"Of course." She nodded, her cheeks dusted a light pink.  
"Are you coming to babysit me whilst dad is at the perfectual office?"  
"Prefectual." Yu corrected.  
"Yes. My grandfather did offer to send me to help babysit, he is in the same offices."  
"Oh here Nanako-chan, have a chocolate." Rise unwrapped her friendship chocolate and offered it to Nanako. "Senpai! Would you like one?" Naoto felt a pang of jealousy as Rise attempted to flirt with Yu again.  
"No, no thanks." Yu took a step back, adjusting Nanako's weight on his back.

"Well we were all going to have a party, but since you're busy."Rise beemed at him. "Or would Nanako-chan like to come to our valentine's party."  
"No thanks, I want to go home and have a bath then go to bed." Nanako yawned. "I already had a valentine's party at school today."  
"Come on Senpai. You'll come for a bit, won't you?"  
"Hey senpai ain't irresponsible, he won't leave Nanako-chan alone t' come partyin'" Kanji grumbled.  
"Well he can leave her with Naoto-kun." She pointed out.  
"I can't leave Naoto-kun to care for my cousin!" Yu didn't mean to snap.  
"Rise, partner here has other responsibilities, Nanako-chan is really tired. Naoto-kun's grampa and Dojima-san asked them both to look after her. That way she's gonna be safe."

-x-x-

A single ruby eye opened, glancing to the sleeping persona, curled in the coils of the red-eyed monster's body. As the dragon released a puff of smoke over the persona's body, it returned to its more natural shadow form, which was roused from its sleep.  
"Mr Dragon, I feel so relaxed, Nao-chan is so relaxed." She stood, stumbling lightly towards the dragon's head. "Will it always be this way?"  
"Hm? No little one, that is not how the world works."  
"You'll always be here for us though, right, you and your master."  
"Of course, he stole Nao-chan's heart just like she has his. I still have to serve my purpose, although that time has not yet arrived, nor will it for a while." The dragon gently nudged the girl into his coiled form. "Until then, we should let them rest, enjoy being warm and in love."  
"Ok. Mr Dragon, I love you." It nuzzled her gently before resting his head down, allowing sleep to overtake him once more.

By instinct, his master wrapped tighter around his younger girlfriend, whatever the reason for the dragon being inside her thoughts, none of it mattered. All that mattered was the girl in his arms, wearing his t-shirt. She was half asleep, quietly amazed at how well their bodies seemed to fit together. Neither were interested in sleep, basking in an afterglow of another intimate experience, knowing Nanako had long since fallen asleep in her bedroom downstairs.  
"Yu-sama, do I need to go downstairs to get a drink?" She mumbled.  
"I'll go get you one if you want." His hand immediately rose to stroke her cheek.  
"That's ok, I'll go." His room was still illuminated by the gentle glow of his desk lamp, and he rolled onto his back, propped on his elbows as she located her clothes that had been discarded across the room and rolled them up her legs. He noticed she still looked like a tomboy, even in her shorts and his t-shirt, the curves of her body hidden under the baggy clothing.  
"If you take too long, I'll come find you." He smirked to himself. "I'll keep your spot warm."

She reached the bottom of the stairs pausing by Nanako's door as she heard what sounded like a soft whimper.  
"Nanako-chan? Is everything ok?" She whispered, pushing gently on her door. The girl was crying, groggy and wiping her eyes to remove the sleep.  
"Nao-chan, I had nightmares." Naoto was kneeling before her, the futon dipping under the added weight. "I dreamed of when I was all alone, and you didn't rescue me this time." Nanako was mimicking Naoto's posture.  
"It's ok, it's only a nightmare." Naoto wrapped her arms around Nanako, hoping to stop her tears.

After fifteen minutes passed, Yu questioned where she had gone. Begrudgingly he crawled out from under the covers, pacing down the stairs, noting that Nanako's door was open. He glanced in, Nanako was sleeping, head against Naoto's arm, who was laying on one side head atop Nanako's, spooning her gently.  
"Everything ok?" He whispered as he knelt beside the futon.  
"Oh senpai. She had a nightmare, she was crying."  
"About the TV world, and not being rescued? It happens occasionally, usually her dad or I spend time with her, she climbs into our futons, or we sleep down here." He moved a lock of brown hair from Nanako's face. "She looks so comfortable, she really trusts you."  
"She's a good kid."  
"She looks up to you." He smiled, noticing there was space on the other side of Nanako. "Let's stay down here, she needs us."

He was asleep on the floor beside the futon, fingers entwined with Naoto's resting atop Nanako's hip. The two young lovers still felt the comfort the other bought, as well as a family-like protectiveness over Nanako. During the night, Nanako woke, feeling the presence of her big brother and sister and felt the nightmare's grip loosen on her.  
"One day, big brother and sister will get married." She whispered to herself. "And I'll have an even bigger family. With another detective, and one day, they'll find who killed mom." Naoto felt her breath hitch slightly as she heard that, her partner was still sleeping, and Nanako had drifted back to sleep as well.  
"Sure Nanako, I'll try to help find her…if your dad lets me."


End file.
